Fighting the Fire
by Txstate1992
Summary: Ariana Brighton and the gang are back for another year at Hogwarts, and Ariana is having problems coping with James' amnesia and the deaths of her friends and roommates. On top of all of that, there is a new DADA teacher at Hogwarts and McGonagall is M.I.A. Who is this new teacher, where has McGonagall gotten off to and what will Caledon do next? Rated T for language
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Fighting the Fire**

**Chapter 1**

**Ariana's POV**

The sun shines down brightly on us; the sky above is cloudless and blue. The air smells of the forest that surrounds us. The sweat that covers my forehead mats my hair to my face. I rake my hand across my face and wipe the sweat away. The grass folds beneath my shoes as I readjust my stance. I grip my wand tightly and glare at my opponent across from me.

"Colovaria!"

I hold up my wand and say "Protego!" but the spell hits me anyways. I see the light blue color rising up from the tips of my hair and sigh. "Teddy what did I do wrong this time?"

He jogs over and readjusts my hands. "You have to move your hand in front of you more. That way it is able to actually block the spell. Here, watch me." He jogs back and readies himself across from me. "Fire when ready."

I flick my wand and yell "Densaugeo!"

He moves his and in front of him. "Protego!" The spell ricochets away from him and shoots in another direction.

I drop my wand and nod my head. "I see what you mean. Let's try it again."

He chuckles and shakes his head. "Ari, we have been at this for hours. Let's give it a rest and go eat."

I let out a dramatic sigh and roll my eyes. "Fine…"

He laughs and we walk into the vacation house. After I spent the first two weeks of summer vacation moping about, Ginny and Harry decided it was time for a vacation. So now we are staying in a huge log cabin out on some mountain in Italy. We've been up here for almost a month. I even spent my seventeenth birthday up here, which was lovely since it didn't involve Monroe. She's here now though, which is why Teddy and I were practicing defense spells outside.

Teddy walks into the kitchen and starts getting things ready to make us lunch.

Al hears Teddy clanking pots and comes running down the stairs calling for me. He runs into the kitchen and laughs when he sees my hair. "Really Ari? Blue?"

I shrug my shoulders and smirk. "What? I just wanted to match Teddy. What were you yelling about?"

He flashes me a big grin. "I have a present for you upstairs…"

I look at him skeptically. He shakes his head and laughs. "Close your eyes."

"Shit Al! You want me to walk up the stairs with my eyes closed?"

He sighs and taps his chin. "Good point... You wait right here with your eyes closed. I will bring your present down to you." Before I can respond he runs up the stairs and yells down "NO PEEKING!"

I close my eyes and tap my foot on the ground impatiently while I wait for him to come back down. I hear something move in front of me move and I tense up.

Suddenly, off to my left I hear, "Okay open your eyes."

I slowly open my eyes and see large pile of camping gear. I look over at Al and smirk. "That is a LOT of camping gear…"

He rolls his eyes and laughs. "Just grab a pack and go get your stuff. We're going camping tonight and tomorrow!"

I look at him warily. "Who's 'we'?"

"Just you, me, James…"

I narrow my eyes and point at him. "No Monroe, right?"

He shakes his head quickly. "No?"

I grin at him. "Good answer! I'm going to go pack."

(Break)

Al and I slowly make our way through the forest behind the vacation house. He leads us through thick brush and dense trees. The tops of the trees cover the top of the forest completely, forming a canopy over the forest floor. There are birds of all kinds flying around and sitting in the trees above. We veer to the right and come across a small cluster of tents. Al holds out his arm and grins. "We're here."

I drop my tent and count the other tents. If it's just supposed to be me, Al and James then why is there an extra tent here? My question is answered when Freddie walks out of the tree line carrying wood. I let out a shriek and sprint over to him, wrapping him in a big hug. "FREDDIE! When the hell did you get released from St. Mungo's?"

I release him from my hug and he sets the wood down with a laugh. "Yesterday. Al and I have been planning this trip for weeks though. By the way, what's with the blue hair?"

"Long story… I was trying to avoid Monroe and, this is what I got for it."

Leaves rustle behind us, then I hear "What about me?"

Freddie grimaces and walks into his tent. I throw my hands in the air and groan. "What the hell is she doing here? Al, you told me she wouldn't be here…"

He shoots a glare at James. "She wasn't SUPPOSED to be here…"

I shake my head. "Well I'm not sharing a tent with her!"

She sneers and grabs James' hand. "Oh don't worry. I'm going to share a tent with Jamie Wamie here." They walk into their tent, but not before Monroe can flip me off.

I turn to Al. "Any more surprises?"

He looks behind me and grins. "Only one."

I turn around, half expecting Ashlynn Silverton to be standing behind me. Instead I see Landen, who is carrying a tent and wearing a grin.

I smirk and give him a hug. "Landen, you have impeccable timing."

He laughs and sets up his tent. "I do what I can…"

From inside his tent, Freddie yells "Would you lot get in here already? We have LOADS to catch up on!"

We all laugh and walk into Freddie's tent.

(Break)

After we all finish the dinner Freddie made for us, Al pulls out a deck of cards.

Freddie grins. "Strip poker? Again Al?"

I groan and shake my head. "No… I'm dreadful at poker! You lot remember winter holiday last year! I was the first one in my knickers!"

Al laughs and puts the cards away. "That's right! You really are horrid at poker... How about we play-"

Al is interrupted my Monroe's shrill voice. "Oh Jamie Wamie, you're SO sweet!"

James' voice rings out after hers. "Mony Wony, you are just too cute!"

Al and Freddie dramatically pretend to hurl. I look over to Landen and he grimaces. "If I have to listen to this all night I'm going to lose it…"

I smirk. "Lose what? Your dinner?"

Al laughs. "Your mind?"

Freddie grins. "Your cool?"

Landen sighs and chuckles. "If they keep it up it's going to be all of the above! It physically pains me to have to listen to it!"

We all look around at each other and break into a fit of giggles. We catch our breath and I look at Al with a devious grin. "Guys, I have an idea…"

**James' POV**

_I am walking through the forbidden forest with Freddie, that asshole Carter Cass, and a couple of girls I don't know. We come to the outside of a clearing and see hundreds of Death Eaters encircling the clearing. There are a few of them lying lifelessly in a crater across from me. In the middle of the clearing is Carter's father. He is standing, with his wand pointed in front of him, in front of a blonde girl who is chained to a post. He has blood seeping from his cheek, suggesting the girl on the post wasn't caught without putting up a fight._

_Carter's father leans forward and says something to the girl. She responds by spitting on him and letting out a rage filled scream. Cass brings the back of his hand colliding into the girls face. Her head jerks to the side, blood spraying from her mouth and revealing her face. It's Ariana!_

_Ariana spits out a bit of blood in her mouth then turns back to Cass with a smile on her bloody lips. "Is that all you've got? You hit like my grandma…"_

_I let out a low laugh and continue watching. Cass snarls and says, "You're lucky the Dark Lord wants you alive. I would end your life right here and now if that weren't the case, Ariana Brighton. Until then, I get to have my fun with you. CRUCIO!"_

_Ariana clenches her teeth together with eyes wide, trying to hold in cries of pain. I look around desperately. I know I have to do something, I just don't know what. If we attack Cass, the other Death Eaters will surely kill all of us AND Ariana…_

_Cass laughs evilly. "What's wrong little girl, no smart ass comments left? Shame, really. I thought you would be a more adverse foe. Now, you shall endure the same pain your father did before I killed him! CRUCIO!" He waves his wand and yells his curse with more feeling this time, causing a small cry of pain to escape her lips. Cass smiles at the slight glimpse of weakness. The look on Ariana's face shows the excruciating pain she is feeling. He releases her and cackles, and lets out another anger-filled crucio, red sparks flying at Ariana. This time he breaks her; she cries out, agonizing pain filling her face. Her feet lift off the ground and her arms bend as her body gives way under the pain._

_Her mouth opens up and she shrieks "JAMES!"_

_No… wait… that was Monroe's voice…_

_I look around for Monroe but I can't find her anywhere._

"JAMES!"

I jerk my eyes open and quickly jump out of my bunk bed. The shriek sounds again. "**JAMES!"**

I run out of my tent and see Ariana, Landen, Freddie and Al all looking up and laughing. I follow their gaze and gasp. Monroe's bed is up in the treetops with two ropes supporting her. She is splayed out on the bed looking down. She is so far up I can barely make out the look of fear on her face. Barely.

I wave my wand and try to bring her bed down but she won't sit still so it's really difficult. I glare over to the others, who are still laughing. "Would one of you prats possibly be able to help me?"

Al holds up his hands and laughs. "Not me, mate."

Freddie mimics him and shakes his head with a laugh. "Not it."

Landen shrugs. "I can't stand her, so I'm out."

Ariana throws her hands in the air and groans. "FINE." She pulls out her wand and steadies the bed. We slowly bring Monroe back to the ground.

As soon as her mattress touches the forest floor, Monroe launches off of it and wraps her arms around my neck. I rub her back and sigh. "How did you even get up there?"

She lets go of my neck and whirls around, her brown hair spinning wildly. She points at Ariana aggressively. "THAT BITCH PUT ME UP THERE!"

Ariana shrugs her shoulders with a laugh. "I got you back down didn't I?"

I sigh and shake my head. "Why can't you two just be friends? Ariana, you could really use a girl to talk to and be friends with…"

Monroe scoffs. "I won't be friends with her! I don't want to die!"

I look at her questioningly. "Why would you die if you were friends with her?"

Monroe rolls her eyes and sighs. "Because! All the girls who were friends with her before are dead now!"

**Ari's POV**

I can feel the anger welling up inside as I register what she said. I see Al shake his head and he says "Nice, Monroe… Real nice…"

James rolls his eyes and walks back into his tent. Monroe shrugs her shoulders and looks at me. "It's true, isn't it little slut?"

I remain quiet, my fists clenched tightly at my side. I clench my teeth and take a deep breath. My anger is rising to the surface, just seconds from exploding. Al steps forward. "Monroe stop."

She ignores Al and takes a step closer to me. "It is true, huh? You're the reason that Bella, Rachelle and Astoria are dead?"

I see Freddie flinch at the sound of Bella's name and I break my silence. "MONROE! SHUT UP!"

"Or what? What are you going to do?"

I close my eyes and take a deep breath to try and calm down. She continues. "Are you going to kill me like you did them?"

I open my eyes and punch her in the nose. "SHUT UP ALREADY! Bloody hell!"

She shrieks and clasps her hands over her nose. "James!"

James pokes his head out of his tent and groans. "What happened now?"

Freddie scoffs. "Your bloody girlfriend was being a right bitch. Ariana hit her. She got what she deserved."

Blood is now running through Monroe's fingers and she's crying. James glares at me. "You hit her?"

I flip him off and walk off into the woods. I've been trying to work on my anger problems but that girl really knows how to irk me. I push through some low hanging branches and find a long river flowing into a large, clear lake with a huge, flat, grey rock in the middle of it.

I hear someone walking through the trees behind me so I quickly run and dive into the lake. I'm not in the mood to talk to anyone. I'm still trying to cool down! I pull myself under a jutted out rock and place on of my palms against the bottom of it. I slowly peek out from under the rock and see James standing at the edge of the lake. He has his hands cupped around his mouth and he is looking around. If I had been smart, I would have used the bubble-head charm before I jumped in here. But I didn't… So now my lungs are starting to burn as I run out of air.

James drops his hands and walks away. I wait until he's completely disappeared from my view and then use the rock I'm hiding under to propel myself up. My head breaks the surface and I gasp for air. "Bloody hell…" I let out a laugh and swim to the flat rock in the middle of the lake. I pull myself onto it and lie back.

I close my eyes for only a moment before I hear "I knew I would find you eventually."

I let out a sigh. "What do you want James?"

"We need to talk. Can you come over here please?"

I laugh and shake my head. "Not going to happen. If you want to talk you're going to have to swim out here."

He groans and jumps in the water. "Why do you enjoy annoying me?"

I grin widely. "Because your girlfriend is a bitch and you let her annoy me. I just figure I can return the favor."

He slaps his hands onto the rock and pulls himself up. "Seriously though. Why are you so impossible?"

I open my eyes and shake my head with a sigh. "Because your bitchy girlfriend doesn't let you hang out with me anymore. The last time I got to hang out with you, JUST YOU, was before… your accident… so you won't even remember…"

He shrugs. "Nope. Sorry…" He lies back and says "I really wish you two could get along. She is an absolute lovely person."

I scoff and sit up, looking out across the lake. "MERLIN! I WISH YOU COULD HEAR YOURSELF! I WISH you could remember her from before! I wish you could open your DAMN eyes and see what a BITCH she is! And it's not just to me! She's a real twat to Freddie and Al too! But you don't care, do you? As long as you have your 'Mony Wony', right? Merlin, she has you under a bloody spell or something!" I stand up on the rock and look at him. "This was a great talk James. I'm _really _feeling better now. Thanks… Asshole…" With that I turn away from him and dive off from the rock.

I pull myself out of the lake and stomp back to the tents. I can hear James calling after me but I don't care. I may have still liked him before, but not anymore. I can't stand the new James. In fact, I don't want to have anything to do with him.

**Alright yall! I hope you enjoyed this first chapter! I would love to know your thoughts and opinions about it!**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 2**

**Ari's POV**

I walk through my room and go through my checklist for what is the fifth time today. We are all back from vacation and back at Grimmauld place. Although the camping trip was a bust, the vacation was lovely. It was nice to get away for a bit. But now we are back to reality and we leave for Hogwarts tomorrow. I want to be sure I have everything so I'm checking and double checking my list. Al knocks on my door and peeks in. "Are you almost completely packed?"

I nod my head. "Yes. Are you?"

He shakes his head with a laugh. "No. I was actually coming up here to see if you could come help me…"

"You're so unprepared…" we walk out of my room and make our way down four flights of stairs to his room. He twists the handle and the door swings open, revealing his messy, green room. His four post bed is unmade, his sheets laid on top of the mattress messily. His floor is covered in books, clothes, parchments, quills, potion supplies, and other miscellaneous items. He has his robes strewn about the room chaotically, some hanging and others crumpled on the floor. I let out a huff and shake my head. "Looks like we have a LOT of work to do."

He laughs and nods. "Yea… sorry… It's more cleaning than packing."

I shrug my shoulders and sit on the ground. "Well get through it. We've got another day before we leave."

Al and I start cleaning when we hear James yelling at Harry. "I'M SO TIRED OF SCHOOL DAD! I HAD TO CRAM A YEAR'S WORTH OF INFORMATION INTO MY BRAIN THIS SUMMER! NOW YOU'RE TELLING ME I HAVE TO GET TUTORED **AND **TAKE YEAR SEVEN CLASSES THIS UPCOMING YEAR? WHEN DOES IT END?"

I roll my eyes and frown. "Well that's what happens when you lose your memory."

Al looks at me with disappointment. "Ari, you KNOW it's not his fault…"

I roll my eyes again and nod with a sigh. "I know. I'm just still upset about this whole thing. Actually, that's not it. I'm upset with what he's become. I'm upset with the fact that Monroe means more to him than his family does and I'm upset with the fact that he can't remember ANYTHING. But more than anything else, I'm upset with myself."

Al pats me on the arm. "I know Ari, I know… But you really shouldn't be mad at yourself. It's not like any of this is your fault."

I don't agree with him at all, but I'm not in the mood to argue with him about this. "Let's change the subject please."

He grins. "Did I tell you that I am one of Sytherine's prefects this year?"

I toss a balled up pair of socks at him and smile widely. "Al! That's awesome!"

We spend the rest of the day packing, cleaning and talking about what we plan to do once we get to Hogwarts.

(Break)

I pull out my letter from McGonagall and read it over again.

_Miss Brighton,_

_I am pleased to inform you that you have been chosen as Head Girl for this upcoming year at Hogwarts. You will be responsible for helping the students at Hogwarts as well as guiding and leading the prefects through a successful year._

_You and the Head Boy will be conducting the introductory meeting at 11:15 sharp. Please be in the compartment for the Head Boy and Head girl by 11:00 sharp so that you and the Head Boy may discuss your strategies and goals for this year._

_Signed,_

_Headmaster McGonagall_

I fold up the parchment and pull out the smaller one that came in the envelope too. I unfold it and read it over again too.

_Ariana,_

_I know you may not understand my reasoning now, but I believe that this will be good for both you AND the Head Boy in more ways than one._

_I am always rooting for you._

_Signed,_

_Headmaster McGonagall_

I fold up that parchment and place it in my bags. McGonagall was right. I DON'T understand why she picked me for Head Girl when there were clearly less broken, more obvious choices. I look at the watch on my wrist and sigh. _10:55…_

I gather my things from above me and exit the empty train compartment. I make my way through the corridors of the Hogwarts Express to the front of the train.

_Landen has GOT to be Head Boy… He's the only male prefect from last year left! He's the obvious choice…_

I grab the handle of the compartment for Heads and lightly pull it open. "Hey Landen I…"

I stop dead in my tracks, dropping all my things in shock, as I realize that the boy sitting in the Heads compartment isn't Landen.

**James' POV**

I sit in the Head Boy compartment waiting for the Head Girl to show up for what feels like forever. I shuffle my feet as I try to figure out who she could be. _Maybe Rose… Or Monroe…_

I shake my head. Monroe hadn't been a prefect. But neither had I so I'm not too sure why I was picked for Head Boy. Most of the Heads are students who were prefects the year before. I had been in complete and utter shock when I received my letter from McGonagall. I hadn't told anyone about my letter either. I was afraid it was a cruel joke of some kind. I look at my watch and then look out the window. _10:55…_

The new head girl should be showing up soon._ I wonder who it will be… I hope it's not Monroe… She has been starting to aggravate me lately... Plus hers and Ariana's fighting is starting to get old…_

A few more minutes pass and then the door to the compartment gently slides open. I hear "Hey Landen I…"

The girl stops her sentence and drops her things. She stares at me with her mouth open and eyes wide. I smile nervously at her. "Hey Ariana…"

**Ari's POV**

He smiles anxiously. "Hey Ariana…"

The sound of his voice breaks through my shock. "J-James?"

He scrambles up and grabs some of my bags. "Here, let me help you with that…"

I respond sharper than I intended. "NO!" He looks at me with wide eyes and I take a deep breath. "No. I don't need your help."

"Fine." He sets the bags down with a smirk and sits back in his seat. After spending a few minutes struggling with my bags, I finally get them put away.

I sit down and play with my charm bracelet while looking at him warily. "There has got to be some kind of mistake…"

He shrugs his shoulders and holds out his letter. "I was in as much shock as you are when I got my letter."

I snatch the letter from his hand and skim it over then hand it back to him angrily. "You weren't even a prefect…"

"You think I don't know that Ariana?" He narrows his eyes at me, obviously mistaking my surprise for a lack of faith in him

His eyes showed the offense he took and I shook my head apologetically. "Sorry James. I guess I just expected Landen to get it." I look at my watch again and take a deep breath. "We should start setting up. The prefects will be here for their meeting in ten minutes."

He nods stiffly and gets up from his seat. We set up the seats and look over the list of prefects who will be here shortly. He looks up with a shocked expression on his face. "Al is a prefect? Why didn't he tell me?"

I shrug my shoulders despite the fact that I already know the answer. He didn't tell James because he isn't as close with him now that he's lost his memory and is dating Monroe again.

James isn't convinced though. "Did you know?"

"Yea… He told me while I was helping him pack." This doesn't help his attitude at all. His lips curl into a frown at the fact that I knew before him. I ignore the frown on his face and grimace as I continue to read the list. "Rylan Adonis is a bloody prefect?"

He shrugs his shoulders, obviously still in a sour mood. His mood lifts, however, when I ask him about quidditch.

"Are you ready for quidditch tryouts this year?"

He nods enthusiastically with a grin. "Hell yea! Although, I am rather upset that I will have to find a chaser to replace Spencer. Hey… Do you play?"

I nod slowly and gently finger my charm bracelet again. "Yes… I'm on the Gryffindor team already… You would know that if you had talked to me about anything other than Monroe this summer…"

The door to the compartment slides open and Al walks in. He looks from me to James, his face displaying his confusion. "Ari? James? YOU TWO are the Heads this year?"

I nod with a smirk. "I know, crazy right?"

He laughs loudly. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I wanted it to be a surprise! Little did I know I was in for the surprise of a lifetime…" I look over at James who is smiling lightly.

Al looks at him and smiles. "I have no idea how you made Head Boy, but congratulations."

A few minutes after Al, Rylan comes in. He winks at me with a grin and then takes a seat. "Ariana, it's good to see you again. I know you missed me."

I roll my eyes and ignore his comment and the odd looks I'm getting from both Al and James.

After Rylan, the remaining prefects slowly file into the compartment. After everyone has joined us, we go through introductions and delve into the heart of the meeting. We explain to them what being a prefect means, their duties and their privileges. At the end we take any questions they may have.

**James' POV**

Ariana runs most of the meeting since I wasn't a previous prefect so I don't know what I'm really doing.

Once the train pulls into the station we all exit and Ariana and I head to the great hall to wait for the sorting and the feast. Ariana takes a seat next to Landen and begins a conversation with him immediately. I awkwardly take a seat next to her and look around. Suddenly Monroe comes out of nowhere and throws her arms around my neck. "JAMIE WAMIE!"

I grimace as her pet name for me reverberates throughout the great hall. "Hey Monroe…"

She insists on yelling yet again and loudly says "WHAT'S WRONG JAMIE WAMIE?"

I grimace again and wince away from her. "I just have a bit of a headache, that's all."

"OH JAMIE WAMIE, I'M SO SORRY!"

McGonagall clears her throat loudly and looks at us. "If you two are finished, let's get started with the sorting." She commences with the sorting, starting with "ALBERTSON, HANNAH."

The sorting seems to take years, and by the time the feast ends, I'm exhausted. Entertaining Monroe has become a full time job and it's tiring me out quickly. Ariana and I make sure the prefects have a handle on all the first years and then head up to the Gryffindor common room. I am about to head up to the boys dorms when Ariana grabs my arm. "James, we have a separate dorm room." She pulls me toward a painting and says the password. We walk into the common room of the Heads dorm room and Ariana points to the right. "Your room is over there." I nod and head into my room. I ignore the fact that I am still in my robes and fling myself onto my bed. My head is on the pillow for a few moments before I drift off to sleep.

_I am walking through the forbidden forest again with Freddie, that asshole Carter Cass, and a couple of girls I don't know. We come to the outside of a clearing and see hundreds of Death Eaters encircling the clearing. There are a few of them lying lifelessly in a crater across from me. In the middle of the clearing is Carter's father. He is standing, with his wand pointed in front of him, in front of a blonde girl who is chained to a post. He has blood seeping from his cheek, suggesting the girl on the post wasn't caught without putting up a fight._

_I look around and realize I've been here before. I have been here every night since the camping trip…_

_Carter's father leans forward and says something to the girl. She responds by spitting on him and letting out a rage filled scream. Cass brings the back of his hand colliding into the girls face. Her head jerks to the side, blood spraying from her mouth and revealing her face. It's Ariana!_

_Ariana spits out a bit of blood in her mouth then turns back to Cass with a smile on her bloody lips. "Is that all you've got? You hit like my grandma…"_

_I let out a low laugh and continue watching. Cass snarls and says, "You're lucky the Dark Lord wants you alive. I would end your life right here and now if that weren't the case, Ariana Brighton. Until then, I get to have my fun with you. CRUCIO!"_

_Ariana clenches her teeth together with eyes wide, trying to hold in cries of pain. I look around desperately. I know I have to do something, I just don't know what. If we attack Cass, the other Death Eaters will surely kill all of us AND Ariana…_

_Cass laughs evilly. "What's wrong little girl, no smart ass comments left? Shame, really. I thought you would be a more adverse foe. Now, you shall endure the same pain your father did before I killed him! CRUCIO!" He waves his wand and yells his curse with more feeling this time, causing a small cry of pain to escape her lips. Cass smiles at the slight glimpse of weakness. The look on Ariana's face shows the excruciating pain she is feeling. He releases her and cackles, and lets out another anger-filled crucio, red sparks flying at Ariana. This time he breaks her; she cries out, agonizing pain filling her face. Her feet lift off the ground and her arms bend as her body gives way under the pain._

_This is the farthest I've ever gotten. I expect myself to wake up at any second now, but the sweet relief doesn't come. Instead, the dream warps into something else._

_I am in a car with Ariana at the wheel. There is snow falling quickly all around us. She is looking around frantically when something jumps onto the hood of the car and busts through the front windshield. Ariana turns her head away from the glass that sprays at her face. The creature reaches a bony hand toward her and rips through the sweater she is wearing. She jerks the wheel to the side and the car goes over a bump._

_We fly through the air and the car lands in a snow bank. Ariana and I look at each other and climb out of the car. The snow is falling in sheets, leaving us standing in a whiteout. I pull out my wand and, as I do a pair of bony, white hands shoot out from the white mess in front of me. The hands raise me up and throw me back against a snow bank, knocking my wand from my hand. I look up and see another creature like the one from before jumps out from above me. It lands on me with snarling teeth, its nails digging into my shoulders and drawing blood. Its sharp teeth are inches from my face, snapping fiercely at my face. Its eyes are glaring intently at me, malice dripping from its expression. Its grip tightens on my shoulders, drawing more blood._

_Suddenly there is an explosion and my world goes dark._

I sit up abruptly, covered in sweat and panting. I look around and try to calm myself down but to no avail. I grab my wand and quietly walk to the common room. I am at the doorway between my room and the common room when I see Ariana sitting on a couch looking at the fireplace. "You can't sleep either?"

Her head whips around quickly, clearly startled by my presence. Her expression lightens and she sighs. "Not since the end of last year…"

I walk over and sit next to her on the couch. "Really? That long, huh? What do you do to pass the time?"

She chuckles lightly. "Usually this."

I sigh and look at the fire. "Oh."

She continues to look at the fire and begins to absentmindedly play with the charm bracelet on her wrist. I can see the bags under her eyes and a faint scar on her lip as the firelight dances on her skin. Her light blue hair is pulled into a ponytail and her expression is pained. I guess she can feel me staring at her because she looks at me out of the corner of her eye and smirks. "What?"

I shake my head and return her smirk. "Nothing, just thinking is all. So why can't you sleep?"

She flinches a bit at then looks at me plainly. "That's what happens when you lose almost all of your friends and your boyfriend in one day. It tends to give you awful nightmares."

I look at her, my confusion apparent. "So the rumors are true then?"

"You shouldn't always believe what people say, James." She shakes her head and looks back at the fire, playing with the heart charm on the bracelet around her wrist.

I scoff loudly. "Obviously… Nobody mentioned a dead boyfriend. Are you sure he's dead?"

**Ari's POV**

I turn from the fire and look at James closely. The light from the fire dances across his confused features as I watch him. His eyebrows are scrunched together, the fire lighting up his hazel eyes and accenting his tan face. His dark hair is strewn about messily as it always it and his lips are parted and pulled down at the corners to accentuate his confusion.

He sure looks like James, but this definitely isn't the same one I was dating before. "If he's not dead then he's just extremely lost… Either way, I don't think I will ever get him back…" I let out a fake yawn and give an exaggerated stretch. "Well, I guess it's off to bed for me…" I get off the couch and head back to my room. I really don't plan on going to sleep, but the conversation was getting a bit too personal for my taste.

I crawl into my bed and pull the sheets up. I twirl my charm bracelet and try to think of anything other than James.

**Sorry it took me so long to update, I just wanted to make sure that this chapter was the best it could be.**

**Let me know what you thought about the chapter! I would love to hear your thoughts! :)**

**I will post chapter three as soon as I get it typed up.**

**Thanks yall for your support! :)**

**-Tx**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 3**

**James' POV**

"Mister Potter, could you wait a moment please?"

I let out a sigh and sit back down while the rest of the students clamber out of the potions dungeon. I drum my fingers on the top of the table as I wait for everyone to leave. Once the last student has finally left, Professor Slughorn motions for me to join him at his desk. "Mister Potter, I understand that you were struggling with potions this summer. At the request of your father, I have found you one of my best students as your tutor. If anyone else had asked, I would have said no. But anything for someone who has made my wall." He grins as he looks over to the wall, where my father's picture hangs among other successful students Slughorn has had in the past.

His attention turns back to me. "As I said before, your tutor is one of the best in my class. If anyone can teach you everything from last year AND help you with this year, it is her."

There is a knock at the door and Slughorn grins. "Ah, here she is now. PLEASE COME IN."

The door opens slowly and Ariana pokes her head in. "You sent for me, Professor?"

He smiles at her and signals to a chair in front of his desk. "Yes Miss Brighton. Please take a seat."

She walks in quickly and sits in the chair Slughorn gestured to. "Sorry I'm late, I was talking to Professor McGonagall."

"That is quite alright Miss Brighton, this will only take a moment. I just wanted to let you know that, since you did such a great job with Landen last year, you will be tutoring Mister Potter this year." She opens her mouth to argue but he holds his hand up and cuts her off. "End of story. Now do I need to sit in her again or can you two handle being alone?"

I sigh and roll my eyes. "Alone is fine. Now can I go? It may only be the second week, but I really do have tons of homework already."

Slughorn nods and excuses both of us. We walk back to the Heads dorm in awkward silence. That is, until Monroe joins us. "HEY JAMIE WAMIE!"

I hear Ariana mumble "I swear that bloody girl is deaf…" before she speeds ahead.

I sigh and mentally curse Ariana for leaving so quickly. I turn to Monroe with a fake smile. "Hello Monroe… I don't mean to be rude but I have a lot of homework, so I really must be going."

She grins widely and wraps her arm through mine. "I WILL HELP YOU WITH IT! That's what GOOD girlfriends do!"

I sigh again and nod. "Let's go then…"

**Ari's POV**

I hear Monroe coming before I see her. "HEY JAMIE WAIME!"

I grimace and speed up my strides, whispering "I swear that bloody girl is deaf…" as I speed walk away. I get into the Heads dorm and walk directly to my room. I toss my things onto my bed and walk to my closet. I pull a tank top off of a hangar and change into it. I then make my way over to my dresser and grab a pair of shorts. I am supposed to meet Landen at the astronomy tower in ten minutes. I hear James enter the common room with someone else, and since I'm not in the mood to deal with him right now, I plot out how I'm going to sneak out of the common room.

I tip toe out into the common room and grin. _So far so good…_

My grin fades, however, as I get next to the couch and my vision blurs. I can feel myself beginning to fall so I outstretch my hand to try and break my fall. I can hear my shallow breathing, my heartbeat, and someone calling my name as my palm comes in contact with the cold floor. My shoulder and head follow my hand as they hit the chilling stone floor. The world seems to be spinning and I've broken out in a cold sweat. Suddenly my blurry vision goes white and I am back in the cemetery.

_I look over to Landen and see him looking toward the back of the cemetery. I follow his gaze and see Rachelle fighting Logan, James collapsed against a headstone with Bella tending to him and Al fighting with Freddie._

_Rachelle's never been much of a fighter so I don't know how she's holding up… And against her boyfriend… I don't know how she can do it…_

_As the thought crosses my mind, Logan shoots a spell that hits her in the chest, the green sparks that shoot out of his wand all too familiar. I feel as though the wind is knocked out of me as I watch her lifeless body fall to the ground. Bella jumps up and brandishes her wand. She shoots a spell at him and begins fighting with him._

_I will my legs to move and I sprint to them, although I feel as though I moving in slow motion. I grip my wand tightly and hurdle over headstones and dug up graves. I literally can't hear anything except my heartbeat as I run to them. I point my wand at him and yell "STUPEFY!"_

_He collapses to the ground and Bella lowers her wand. She flashes me a quick, thankful smile and sighs. I'm just a few feet away from her when suddenly, out of nowhere, Arowena runs through the cemetery. She points her wand at Bella and says "Avada Kedavra!" Green sparks fly from her wand and hit Bella full on. Her smile fades and her body crumples to the ground. I can hear someone screaming pain filled screams, but I can't figure out who it is. I look around to find out and realize the screams are coming from me._

_Arowena then turns to Logan and says "Avada Kedavra!" His already limp body twitches ever so slightly but remains unchanging other than that. She turns to me with a smirk then skips away. I raise my wand and scream at the top of my lungs "SECTUMSEMPRA!" The spell skims her arm and cuts her, but doesn't do any other damage. She smirks at me again and continues to skip away._

_I try to run after her but someone grabs me by the waist and holds me back. I strain against the person's arms and scream again. "NO! YOU BITCH!" My screams turn to small sobs as I look over to Freddie and Al. Freddie twirls his wand and hits Al with a spell and he collapses to the ground in a heap._

_I feel the wind leave my lungs as I try to fight against the person who's holding me. Hot tears flow quickly and freely down my face as the last of my friends dies. I scream out again as if that's going to change the events that just took place. "AL! NO PLEASE!"_

_I see a spell shoot past us and hit Freddie in the chest. He crumples to the ground and a bunch of people run past us to my dead friends. I see Harry in the group of people who are checking the kids and that brings on a whole new wave of emotions. His two sons are dead because of me. My throat is killing me, but it doesn't stop me from yelling out. "I'M SO SORRY! THIS IS ALL MY FAULT! I'M SO SORRY!"_

_The person holding me pulls me to the ground and wraps me in a tight hug. I bury my face in their chest and sob openly against their shirt._

I come back to and feel someone gripping my shoulders tightly. "Ariana! Ariana are you alright?"

I shakily sit up and push James away from me. "I-I'm fine. Leave me alone…" The image of his unconscious body mixes with those of my dead friends and I can't help but shudder. I can feel fresh tears running down my face. I bring up my hand and wipe them away.

James looks hurt at my attitude toward him, but I don't care. There's nothing he can do to make me feel better. Plus, every time he gets near me, it gets harder for me to remember that this isn't the same James I was dating so long ago. It gets harder to let go and harder to forget. He frowns at me and stands up. "Fine."

I hear Monroe say under her breath "Melodramatic bitch…"

I slowly stand up and frown. "Monroe you're such a stupid twat… You have no idea what's going on so you really should just shut the hell up."

She looks to James and begins crying. She points to me and says through sobs "JAMIE! WHAT… ARE… YOU… GOING… TOOOO… DOOOO? S-SHE INSU-ULTED MEEEE!"

James rolls his eyes and sits down in front of a book. "Monroe, you're seventeen. You can handle it yourself."

She stops sobbing and turns to him with wide eyes. "Y-you don't love me anymore?"

I laugh loudly and exit the common room. I sneak my way to the astronomy tower and find Landen looking through a telescope. I tip toe up behind him and poke him in the side. He responds by jumping to the side and letting out a small squeal.

He glares at me then lets out a laugh. "We will never speak of this again, do you hear me?"

"I'm sorry, I couldn't hear you over that girlish squeal!"

He narrows his eyes at me and smirks then he turns back to the telescope and looks through the scope. "So how have the nightmares been?"

I lean back against the stone wall and shrug. "As rough as you'd expect. Something odd happened today though. It was right before I came here… I was walking out of the dorm when… well, I'm not really sure what happened. One second I was walking here and the next I was back in the cemetery watching Bella and Rachelle get murdered again…"

He leans up from the telescope and gives me a serious look. "Are you alright?"

I roll my eyes. "I'm fine. I was a bit upset, but I will get over it…"

He nods. "How was your talk with McGonagall? What did she say?"

"Aren't you supposed to be plotting constellations? If I'm going to be a distraction then I can leave…" I say with a smirk.

He shakes his head quickly and picks up his star chart. "No, no. That won't be necessary… I am plotting constellations right now, see?"

I let out a laugh and nod. "Well, McGonagall said that she thinks James and I being in close quarters the way we are now will help him get his memory back. I don't see how that's right though, since we already live together and nothing has happened yet. She also said that she thinks if I stay busy then I won't think about their deaths as much. Again, she's wrong. I'm not going to be able to stop thinking about it even if McGonagall were to kick Monroe out of Hogwarts."

He chuckles lightly and plots another constellation. "Well if you need anything, I'm here for you."

"I know. But right now, what I need you to do, is finish that star chart!"

He laughs and holds up his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay… Come help me though!"

I get up from where I'm leaning and walk over to help him. If seems like only minutes have passed when I look down at my watch. _1:18 am…_

I poke him in the side again and he squeals once again. He shoots a menacing glare at me. "Do it again… I dare you…"

I accept his challenge and we slowly circle each other. I suddenly lunge out and try to poke him, but he anticipates it and catches my wrist. He pulls my wrist out and scoops me up over his shoulder, my face against his back. "Mmphmhm."

He lets out a laugh. "What?"

I place my palms on his back and push up. "I said: curfew…"

He looks at his watch and curses loudly. "Thanks for the heads up you prat!"

I punch him in the back and laugh. "Let me down you git! I'm not getting in trouble for the likes of you!"

He chuckles lightly and shakes his head. "Well since you asked so nicely… no."

I release my hands and lie limply. "Bloody prat…"

He laughs and runs down the corridors silently. He hides when necessary and runs quite stealthily the rest of the time. We get to the Gryffindor common room and Landen sets me down. "It's about time! I was losing circulation to my brain!"

He smirks. "There wasn't much circulation to be lost so no harm no foul."

My mouth drops open and I punch him in the chest. "Prat!"

"You make it too easy, Ariana! If you made it more challenging it probably wouldn't happen as often!"

I grin and shake my head. "Right… You need to get off to bed now. I'm not afraid to give you a detention!"

He sighs. "Alright. Will we get to hang out tomorrow?"

"Sadly, no. Although I do thoroughly enjoy your teasing, I have to tutor James tomorrow. Which means you'll have to find someone else to tease!" I nudge him with me shoulder and smirk.

He frowns heavily. "I didn't know you were tutoring Potter? Are you ready for that?"

I roll my eyes and groan. "Ugh! Always the worrier, aren't you? Fine, meet me out here tomorrow night. We can talk then."

He nods and walks to the boys dormitory. He gives me one last wave and ascends the stairs. I smirk and enter the Heads dorm, only to find James sitting in front of the fire.

**James' POV**

I sit staring at the fire, lost in the memory of my most recent nightmare, when someone touches my shoulder. "James?"

I jump at her touch and fall off the couch with a loud "OOF."

She helps me off the ground and smirks. "More nightmares or were you just worried about me?"

I don't answer her, but instead stand in front of the fire staring at her like an idiot. She rolls her eyes at my lack of speech and turns to walk away. I grab her wrist and stop her, which is obviously a big mistake.

She turns her head and stares at my hand on her wrist with wide eyes for only a moment and then she jerks her arm free from my grasp. She looks at me angrily. "What?"

I just continue to stare at her, willing my lips to say what I'm thinking, but no words come out. She rolls her eyes again and walks into her room. Finally the words come and I blurt out "I've been having dreams about you."

She pokes her head out from her room with a shocked expression on her face. "Excuse me?"

"Every night… It's not always the same dream but they all have you in them." I say, my words more spilling out now than anything else. "It's been ever since the camping trip… I tried to tell you about it at the lake that first day of the camping trip, but that obviously didn't happen."

She shakes her head and sighs. "James… I-I can't. I just can't do this right now… Maybe we can talk about this tomorrow…"

I nod glumly. I had wanted more than anything to talk about these nightmares and I had ruined it. I pinch the bridge of my nose and walk back to my room. I throw myself onto my bed and groan. Why am I having these stupid nightmares? I close my eyes and try to fall back asleep, but sleep evades me.

(Break)

My classes were grueling since I hadn't gotten any sleep. My day was extremely long and Monroe just made it worse. She spent the entire day telling me about how terrible Ariana is. Apparently their fight last night revived her feelings from the camping trip. "She's just such a slutty bitch."

"Yes Monroe, you've said that… multiple times…"

She sighs. "Well did I mention that she bullies me on a daily basis and has done so for the past two years?"

I nod and internally groan. "Yes Monroe. You mentioned that as well… Look, I have to get to tutoring now. We can continue this 'Ariana bashing' later if you still feel the need to."

"Okay Jamie Wamie… Just don't let her seduce you with her sluttiness…" She bats her eyelashes at me and smiles with fake innocently.

I roll my eyes and laugh. "I'll do my best. I did live her before, so I think I can handle myself." I turn to walk away but she grabs my hand before I can. I turn and smirk. "Wha-"

She cuts me off by grabbing my neck and pulling me down for passionate kiss. She releases me and smiles. "Don't forget about me Jamie Wamie…"

I roll my eyes again. "I really have to go Monroe." I pull away from her and walk through the portrait. I basically sprint to the potions dungeon. I have been looking forward to this all day, but I'm not too sure why…

Maybe because I haven't really ever spent much alone time with Ariana before…

Maybe it's because I really want to talk to her about my nightmares. I figure if there's anyone who knows about nightmares, it's her.

I fling open the door to the classroom and calmly walk in. Ariana is sitting at one of the potions tables with her head buried in a book. The door to the classroom shuts behind me and her head snaps up. "Are you ready to get started?"

I take a seat next to her and smirk. "Hello Ariana. I'm doing well today. It's good to see you too."

She rolls her eyes and laughs. "I'll take that as a yes. Go get the ingredients for…" She points to a potion in the book, "…this potion here."

I nod and walk over to the ingredients cabinet and gather the necessary ingredients. I walk back to the table and drop them off. "Is this everything?"

"Yes. Now what ingredient does the book say to add first?"

I add the first ingredient and she nods approvingly. I add the next two and she nods again. I stir the potion as the book says and add another ingredient. I reach over and grab another ingredient but Ariana slaps my hand with a smirk. "If you add that now, you're going to ruin the whole potion."

I drop the ingredient. "How do you know?"

She laughs cheerfully. "Because **I** know how to read the instructions! If you did too, you would know that we have to wait two ninety five minutes before we can add anything else."

My mouth drops open. "Ninety five minutes?" Her only response is a grin and a nod. I close my mouth and shrug my shoulders. "Ninety five minutes it is…"

She nods again and goes back to her book from before. _She's not getting off that easy…_

"So about last night…"

I see her tense up at the mention of it but she doesn't look up from her book. "Mhm?"

I grab the book she's reading and shut it. She reaches for the book but I stand up and hold it over my head. "You said we would talk about it today."

She jumps for the book but doesn't come close, so she retreats and sits back down with a glare. "James why are you insisting on this?"

"Because, Ariana, I think they mean something and you seem to be an expert on nightmares since you've been having them since the end of last year. Plus they're rather confusing and I could really use another point of view…"

She sighs and sits back in her chair. "Fine. Start off by telling me about them."

I take a deep breath and tell her about the nightmare from the forest, the one where she is being crucioed by Carter Cass' father. I tell her that there are three girls with me who I don't know, along with Freddie and Carter Cass, who are with me. Her eyes widen, but that's the only reaction I get out of her.

Then I tell her about the dream with the creatures. I tell her about the snow, about the car, about the creatures and about the cuts.

When I mention the cuts, her eyes dart from my shoulders back to my face, her own face ashen. She waits until a few moments after I've finished talking to respond. "I- um… I… Okay. Why are the nightmares confusing?"

"Why did you react like that?"

I watch her face go from stoic to pained to fearful to angry in just a few seconds. She asks me more firmly this time. "Why. Are. The. Nightmares. Confusing?"

I let out a sigh and pinch the bridge of my nose. "Because the nightmares have me convinced of one thing about you and Monroe continues to confirm it, but times like now have me completely convinced otherwise…"

She looks at the table. "Oh. Okay, well I'm not sure how to-"

I hold up my hand and interrupt her. "I'm not finished. Why do you and Monroe hate each other so much and why isn't SHE in any of my nightmares?"

"Do you really want to see your girlfriend in your nightmares?" She asks while stifling a laugh. "Monroe wouldn't be in your nightmares anyways because she doesn't give two shits about anyone but herself. That is also, coincidentally, one of the same reasons that she and I don't get along…"

I nod. "Okay, final question. Why did you react that way when I told you about my nightmares. It was as if you knew exactly what I was talking about… As if you had been there for real…"

She rolls her eyes and groans. "Merlin, James! Why are you so aggravating? Can I just have my book back please? I talked to you about your nightmares like we agreed…"

I nod warily. "Okay…" I give her the book back and she snatches it from my hand with a glare.

"But this isn't over. I can tell that you're hiding something and I'm going to figure out what it is. I promise you that, Ariana…"

**I hope you lovely readers enjoyed this chapter and as always, I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions!**

**Thanks yall! :)**

**-Tx**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 4**

**James' POV**

Ariana and I finish the potions lesson in tense silence, only speaking when necessary. Once the lesson is over, I run from the classroom to the Slytherine dungeon. Luckily I run into Al as soon as I get there, which saves me from having to wait around for him. He walks up with a half-hearted smile. "Hey Ja-"

I interrupt him by grabbing his arm and pulling him to the side. He tugs his arm from my grip and frowns. "What the hell James?"

I ignore the frustration in his tone and immediately say "I've been having nightmares that involve Ariana. When I tried to tell her about them just now, she got all freaked out and refused to talk to me about them. I know she's hiding something and if anyone will know what it is, it's you or Landen."

He shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly. "Why didn't you ask Landen then?"

"Because I can't use the 'brother' card on Landen, now can I?"

He grimaces. "She's going to kill me… ugh fine. What do you want to know?"

I grin. "Let me tell you about the dreams first." I tell him everything I told Ariana and then wait for him to react.

His reaction to my dreams is the exact opposite of Ariana's. He has a huge grin on his face and joy emanates from his face. He looks at me with a grin for a few moments and then finally talks. "You're dreams are nothing but memories… Literally! You're beginning to remember things from before; from year five and year six! When did this all start?"

"It started on the camping trip. Why didn't Ariana just tell me that they are memories? Why was she so freaked out?"

He shrugs again. "She's under the impression that if you don't remember her then you're safer."

I look at him with shock. "That's absurd!"

"We've tried telling her that multiple times but, once she's sure of something, there's no convincing her otherwise."

I glare at the ground. "Thanks Al. I've got to go now."

I try to walk past him but he steps in front of me and blocks my path. "Ariana isn't the only one who hasn't been honest with you James."

"Yes I know. You knew all along and-"

He holds up his hand and cuts me off. "Well yes, but I wasn't talking about me. I was talking about Monroe. She and Ariana don't get along because she used to bully Ariana. I bet you she didn't tell you that… I wonder what else she could be lying about…"

I glare at him and then sigh. "I really have to go now…" He nods and I walk past him. I need to find Ariana.

But first: I need to find Monroe.

I wander through multiple corridors with no luck. I decide that it's time to give up the search for her and just go find Ariana. I turn around and walk back through the corridor I am in. Once I get to the end, I take a left and stop dead in my tracks. Standing ahead of me are Monroe and that Ravenclaw prefect Rylan. Well Monroe's more pressed against the wall than standing, since she and Rylan are snogging.

I can feel my stomach drop as I watch the two snogging people in front of me. I narrow my eyes and clear my throat. Both of their faces slowly separate and, when Monroe sees me, she shoves Rylan off of her and slaps him. "How dare you come on to me like that! I have a boyfriend you weasel!"

I laugh coldly and shake my head. "Not anymore, you don't."

Her eyes widen and she steps toward me. "Jamie Wa-"

I narrow my eyes again. "Don't call me that." With that I turn and walk away from them. I can hear Monroe calling out after me but I ignore her. I march into the Heads dorm and see Ariana sitting on the couch talking to Landen.

I walk over and slam my books down in front of her. She jumps back, startled by the loud noise. "What the hell was that James?"

I grimace at her and put as much disdain in my voice as I can and ask "Who the hell are you to try and protect me?"

**Ari's POV**

"Ex-excuse me?"

He narrows his eyes and repeats his question, acidity dripping from every word. "Who the HELL are YOU to try and protect ME?"

I can feel myself getting angrier while he yells at me. I stand up from the couch, my wand in hand. "Who the HELL do YOU think YOU are to come in here and RUDELY interrupt my conversation with Landen?"

I throw my hands in the air and a spark flies out of my wand. Landen stands from the couch and snatches the wand from my hand. "Now you may continue."

James points an accusing finger at me and glowers. "YOU have NO RIGHT to keep secrets like that from me!"

I laugh icily and glare at him. "I WAS DOING IT TO PROTECT YOU!"

He shakes his head rapidly. "I DON'T NEED YOU TO PROTECT ME!" He pinches the bridge of his nose. "But if these nightmares are accurate, you need someone to protect you."

I scoff loudly and shake my head. "**I **DON'T NEED **ANYONE **TO PROTECT ME! Just because you're going out with that vile little cockroach Monroe doesn't mean you need to act like her!"

He shakes his head again, this time at a more normal speed, and sighs. "I'm going to bed."

Just then one of the paintings says "James, Monroe is looking for you. She seems rather devastated."

He flips up his middle finger and shakes his head. "Tell her to piss off." He drops his hand and walks into his room silently.

Landen and I sit there for a few moments in awkward silence before he stands up and hands me my wand. I am still seething from my encounter with James, and Landen can tell. "I'm going to go to the astronomy tower. You're welcome to come along if you'd like."

I shake my head stiffly. He squeezes my shoulder and nods. "Alright well, if you need me, you know where I'll be."

I nod my head and he exits the dorm, leaving me standing in the Heads common room alone and angry.

**James' POV**

I storm into my room and flop down onto my bed. I look at the ceiling and grunt. How could she think it was her place to protect ME?

Who the hell does she think she is?

I close my eyes and take some deep breaths to try and calm myself down. Before I know it, I'm dreaming again.

_I look around the large room. It has different stations for different classes. I look over to Ariana and smile "Where should we start?"_

_"Do you know how to produce a patronus?" She asks while looking at the dementor._

_I let out a laugh. "Of course! My dad taught me in my third year. Do you want me to teach you?"_

_"No I just wanted to give you an opportunity to brag." She wrinkles her nose and sticks out her tongue. "Of course I want you to teach me!"_

_"Alright sassy pants. Get over here then!" I say while walking across the gigantic room to the dementor dummy. She follows me over there and sits on the floor._

_"Okay, so what you are going to want to do is think of a happy memory. A memory that fills you with so much happiness it feels like it's going to burst out of you. Do you have your thought?" She nods and I respond with a smile. "Okay good. Now watch me."_

_I step in front of the dementor dummy and point my wand at it. "Expecto Patronum!" A skinny, scraggly looking wolf erupts from the end of my wand and runs right at the dementor dummy. I turn around with a shocked smile on my face. "My patronus is… a coyote?"_

_She looks at me with confusion. "You didn't know what your patronus was?"_

_I shake my head. "I can normally get a non-corporeal patronus, but I've never been able to produce a corporeal patronus."_

_"Okay. My turn!" She says as she jumps up. She stands in front of the dummy and closes her eyes. She reopens her eyes and points her wand at the dummy. "Expecto Patronum!" A large white bird shoots out of the end of her wand. It hits the dummy and bursts into wispy patronus flames. She moves her wand around the room and the bird reforms and follows. It flaps around the room, squawking as it does. She catches me looking at her and drops her wand, the patronus disappearing when she do. A blush creeps up her face as I say with a grin "Your patronus is a phoenix. How bloody cool is that! And you got a corporeal patronus on your first try! What was your happy thought?"_

_She exhales sharply and says "This."_

_She walks across the floor and gets on her tip toes. She grabs my face with both hands, and pulls me down into a kiss._

_I hesitate with confusion at first, but I sink into the kiss after a second. Our lips fit together perfectly, as if they were two puzzle pieces finally finding their match. I wrap my arms around her waist and pull her closer, not wanting any space left between us. She responds by wrapping her arms around my neck. I feel the room around me slowly evaporating, until all that's left in my mind is us._

_Our kiss lasts for a few moments until she pulls away. She steps back and puts her hand on her forehead. "Shit. Sorry…"_

_I rub the back of my neck and chuckle. "Don't be."_

_She smiles and points to the transfigurations table. "I'm… uh… I'm going to go work on transfiguring stuff…"_

_She turns and walks to the table. As she does the things surrounding me become hazy and begin to disappear until all that's left is pitch black darkness._

I open my eyes slowly and stretch. This may not have been a nightmare, but it certainly was just as confusing. I get up from my bed and run my fingers through my hair with a sigh. I quietly tip toe out to the common room to go to where I normally hang out when I can't sleep. I take a seat on the couch and groan.

Suddenly Ariana's bedroom door opens. She pokes her head out warily and looks at me. She looks exactly the same as she did in my dream, making me question if I really am awake. "I'm still really mad at you James, but… I'm sorry about what happened with Monroe."

I raise my eyebrow questioningly and she shrugs. "I have my sources." She looks at the ground and sighs. "I'm uh… I'm going to go now…" Her bedroom door shuts quietly.

I get up from the couch and walk over to her door. I knock lightly, earning a response. "Goodnight James."

I knock again. This time I hear footsteps coming toward the door. It swings open and Ariana stands in front of me, one hand on the door and the other on the door frame. "What James?"

I don't answer her but, instead, just stand in her doorway staring at her. There is something about her that is familiar… Something that I can't quite place my finger on… She rolls her eyes and swings the door shut. "You're so creepy now…"

I place my foot in the doorway and the swinging door bounces back off my foot. She is over by the wall across from me. She turns around and looks at me. "What? What could you po-"

I cross the room in a few bounds, stopping her midsentence. She backs away until her back is flat against the wall, but she is sure to keep her eyes on me at all times. "WHAT Ja-"

Before she can finish I forcefully bring my lips to hers and kiss her desperately.

**Alright yall! What did you think?**

**I hope you all enjoyed the chapter!**

**I will be sure to post chapter 5 ASAP! :)**

**-Tx :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 5**

**Ari's POV**

"WHAT Ja-"

I'm not even able to finish my question before James is kissing me. He is cupping my face with both of his hands, pulling my face to his. His lips press against mine furiously, desperately. It's as if he's trying to get all the answers to his questions with this one action. As if this one kiss will make everything right and bring things back to the way they were before.

I start to get into the kiss and grab his shirt to pull him closer, but then I realize that this kiss is really just in response to what happened with Monroe. Although I would LOVE to continue kissing him, I remind myself that this isn't the same James from before and I push him away. "No… This isn't right."

He releases me and backs away, the look on his face showing immediate regret for what he had just done. "Ariana… I'm so… so sorry." He turns and retreats from my room, flashing me one more apologetic look before he does.

I wait until I hear his bedroom door close and then I crawl onto my bed and curl up. I reach around for my wand and quickly send a patronus message. I only lie on my bed waiting for a few minutes before a sleepy Landen is standing in my doorway. He yawns loudly and gives a dramatic stretch. "Why did you send your bloody phoenix into my room?"

I continue to lie curled up on my side when I respond flatly. "I just wanted to talk…"

He stretches again and shakes his head. "You know, we don't all have nightmares and stay up until the wee hours of the night like you Ariana. I was actually sleeping."

We actually do this all the time. If I have a nightmare, I usually just send him a patronus and he shows up. Sometimes the nightmares aren't bad enough for me to send him a message. So he knows that, when he does get one, it's important. A lot of the times that I call him over due to nightmares, he spends the night. It's nothing romantic; it's just that the company soothes me. In my nightmares, I am alone. I watch everything happen alone. I am left standing in the cemetery alone. So it was really hard to wake up and be alone as well. It made the fallout from the nightmares so much worse. The first time he spent the night, it was a bit weird. But now we barely even think about it. He's even started keeping some clothes here since he's here so often.

Normally I would insult him back in some way, shape or form, but right now all I could muster up was "Please?"

His face gets serious and he walks over to my bed, taking a seat on the mattress. "Yea alright… I was only joking. What's wrong?"

I sigh. "James… He-"

He cuts me off and gently grabs my chin, inspecting my face. "Did he hurt you? I'll bloody kill him if he did…" I shake my head and he releases my chin. "Then what Ari? I'm tired and at my wits end here! What happened?"

I sigh again. "He… He kissed me."

I see confusion play out on his face as he registers what I just said. His mouth twitches up into a smirk and he raises an eyebrow at me. "He kissed you? I'm awake right now because he kissed you? Was it really that bad?"

I frown. "Landen, this is no time for jokes… I don't know what I'm going to do!"

He shrugs his shoulders. "Well you could always avoid kissing him again."

"Landon you twat…"

He grins. "There's the spitfire I know and love. Are you alright now or do you need me to stay?"

I shrug my shoulders. "It's up to you. I would LIKE for you to stay, but it's up to you."

"Well then stay I shall!" He lies back with his arm outstretched. "Come on then. I know the drill."

I scoot over to him and lay my head on his shoulder with a smile. "Thank you."

He wraps his outstretched arm around me protectively and gives me a hug. He plants a kiss on the top of my head and yawns. "See you in the morning."

I nod my head and reciprocate his yawn. "See you in the morning."

**Landen's POV**

_BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!_

I open my eyes and groan. I grab Ariana's watch off of her bedside table and turn of the alarm. I rub my eyes and slowly work my arm out from under Ariana. I get up from her bed and look at her. Her mouth is open and her hair is strewn messily about her face. _She looks so cute when she sleeps…_

I grab a pillow from her bed and snicker as I raise it up and bring it crashing down onto her face. She jerks upright and looks around, clearly startled. I start laughing and she turns her head toward me. "You bloody prat… Must you wake me up that way EVERY time?"

I shrug my shoulders and walk over to her trunk. "Of course!" I pull out a tie and groan. "Is it the bloody weekend yet?"

She laughs and tosses the pillow at me. "Actually, it IS Friday…"

"We should throw a party tonight!"

She rolls her eyes and grins. "We can talk about this in class. Hurry up and get dressed or we are going to be late!" She walks over to her dresser and tosses me a shirt while pulling out one of her own. We quickly get dressed in our uniforms and briskly walk to our first class.

We swiftly take our seats in Transfigurations just as Professor Patil is beginning class. I pull out a piece of parchment and a quill. I write down my note and slide it over to Ariana.

**So how about that party?**

She rolls her eyes and scrawls something back quickly. She slides it back over to me.

I'm Head Girl… I can't be involved with a party.

**Well you don't have to HOST the party; you just have to show up.**

Again, that would be highly against my better judgment.

**Oh Ari, don't be such a prat. Just come to the party!**

Where do you even plan on having this party?

**I was thinking the room of requirements.**

That's actually not a bad idea…

**I told you! You know… since you can't attend the party as a guest… maybe you can attend as a "chaperone"…**

Look at you go! Someone's feeling pretty brilliant today, huh? Who all are you going to invite?

**I'm not sure yet… I'm thinking most of the Gryffindor house, excluding Monroe and her bitchy friends. Al of course… None of the other snakes though. The Puffs can come too. Maybe even the Ravenclaws can come.**

Two flaws with that lovely plan of yours. 1)If you don't invite Monroe or her friends then they are going to go to McGonagall about it. 2)You have no way of inviting all those people without getting caught.

**Alright fine. I will invite Monroe and her little troll followers. But I'm not happy about it… If they ruin the party I'm coming after you. As for inviting people, I have that covered.**

I'm not sure I like where you're going with this…

**You have to admit, it sounds like it will be fun though. So it's decided then? I'm inviting all of Gryffindor, all of Hufflepuff, and all of Ravenclaw? And Al?**

Sounds like quite a guest list.

**You are going to come right?**

I don't know…

**Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaseeeee?**

Only if you agree to never do that again.

**Agreed! I'm going to have to get Freddie in on this...**

What time will it be at?

**You have to wait for your invite just like everyone else.**

Prat.

I lift my quill to respond but get interrupted by Professor Patil shouting at us. "Mister Raghnall! Miss Brighton! Do I need to separate you two?"

Ariana and I snicker and I respond. "No Professor. Ariana says she will behave now. I'm very sorry for her lack of control."

She kicks me under the table and sighs. "I'm very sorry Professor. It won't happen again."

After that, class flies by. As we leave the classroom, I grab Ariana's arm with a grin. "Let's go give out those invitations."

She laughs and shakes her head. "Landen, I have class. You are going to have to do this without me."

I push out my bottom lip and attempt to pout. She rolls her eyes and pushes me playfully. "I have to go to class. But I better get an invite!"

I shrug my shoulders and smirk. "I'll see if I can put in a good word with the host for you."

She flips me off and walks away. I roll my eyes with a grin and turn to go find Freddie. It doesn't take me long to find him. "OI! FREDDIE!"

He jogs over to me with a grin. "Morning Landen! What sorts of mischief can I help you with today?"

I grin mischievously. "How do you feel about throwing a party?"

(Break)

I stand at the entrance to the room of requirements and admire mine and Freddie's handiwork with a grin. The music is blasting and there are students dancing all around. There are lights flashing and streaming throughout the room. There is a long table with food and nonalcoholic drinks on it. On the wall opposite it, there is a table with butterbeers and firewhiskeys on it. The table with the alcohol has a charm on it so that nobody can have more than one firewhiskey, just so that we don't have loads of pissed students stumbling around the castle.

Monroe and James walk up to the door holding hands. "Can we get in?"

I laugh loudly and roll my eyes. "Well that was fast, Potter…"

Monroe giggles and kisses him. "Can we get in or not Landen?"

I scoff at them and nod. "Sadly, Ariana insists that I say yes. So go knock yourselves out."

Monroe giggles again and pulls James into the room. I roll my eyes and grimace. I look back down the corridor and see Ariana coming toward me with Al. My grimace turns to a grin as she twirls in a circle in front of me, her red dress splaying out as she does. "What do you think?"

I nod approvingly. "Very nice. That outfit screams 'I just stumbled upon this party and now I'm here strictly to supervise.'"

She smirks and twirls again. "That's what I was going for!"

I look over to Al and my grimace returns. "Did you see the crazy couple is back together again?"

He shakes his head and frowns. "Ugh yes. I honestly thought he was heading in the right direction, then he goes and does something like this…"

Ariana smacks us both on the arm. "This is a party! Let's not spend it talking about how daft James is! Now let's go party! Oh, I mean 'supervise'…"

Al and I laugh and we all walk in. I wrap my arm around Ariana and the three of us wander through the party to find Freddie. After about ten minutes of looking for Freddie, Al abandons us when he sees a pretty Ravenclaw who is standing by the food table shyly.

Ariana and I take this as an opportunity to sit down, but not before we make a stop to the table with the alcohol. Ariana is hesitant to take a bottle of firewhiskey at first, but after she sees Monroe and James snogging in the corner, she snatches a bottle off the table and takes a swig of it.

**Ari's POV**

The firewhiskey burns as it runs down my throat, but leaves a warm feeling in the pit of my stomach. I link arms with Landen and we walk over to a couch that sits against one of the walls. We take a seat and he puts his arm around my shoulder as he takes a drink of his firewhiskey. I take another drink and look around. There are hundreds of students here, most of which are dancing. A few are sitting on couches talking or snogging. Al is leaning against the wall talking to a Ravenclaw he met last year. I smile as he and the girl walk out and begin dancing.

I look over at Landen and take another drink. "Where's Freddie?"

He shrugs his shoulders. "I'm not too sure. He was here when the party started. I think I see him… I'm going to go check on him."

I nod as he gets up and walks away. I take a deep breath and take another swig of my drink and wince as it goes down my throat. I close my eyes and take another deep breath, losing myself in thought. My thoughts are interrupted by someone plopping down next to me. "You know, this is a party. No sleeping allowed."

I shake my head and open my eyes. "Why oh why do you insist on bothering me Rylan?"

He takes a large gulp from the bottle of firewhiskey and grins at me. "How about we go dance?" He sloppily leans his face close to mine and whispers "I can make all your troubles disappear. Just one dance and your whole world could change." I lean away from him and grimace. His breath smells strongly of alcohol. He flashes me a crooked smile and grabs my arm, giving it a hard tug. I really don't want to dance with him, but I'm not in the mood to deal with a drunk jerk so I finish off my drink and follow him out into the middle of the room.

I can feel the effects of the firewhiskey as soon as I get up off the couch. I hold out my free hand to try and balance myself as I am drug behind a tripping and stumbling Rylan. I decide that as soon as I get the chance, I'm going to get away from this lightweight. I don't trust him at all when he's sober, let alone when he's drunk. He releases my arm as he trips over himself yet again, and I realize this is my chance to get away.

I duck down and slowly back away from Rylan, who is holding himself up by grabbing onto a chair and another person. I make my way back to the couch I was on before and try to sit, but I am stopped by someone gripping my arm. I turn around to see who is holding my arm so tight and gasp.

"I just wanted to let you know I'm back. And I plan on picking up where we left off."

**Oho! Who could this mystery person be? Why is James back with Monroe? Where has Freddie gotten off to? So many questions! :P**

**As always, I hope you enjoyed the chapter and I would absolutely love to know what you thought about the chapter!**

**Thanks yall! :)**

**-Tx**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 6**

**Ari's POV**

"I just wanted to let you know that I'm back. And I plan on picking up where we left off."

A wide smirk spreads on his face as I realize who he is and my hand automatically goes to my abdomen. _Castor Perlorn?_

The gesture doesn't go unnoticed and he lets out a chuckle. "Clearly you remember me…"

I shake my head and jerk my arm free. I squeeze my eyes shut and rub them to try and clear the image. Maybe I had been imagining him… I had gone through a whole bottle of firewhiskey pretty fast, maybe that was making me see things. Suddenly, right next to my ear, I hear "Oh and I brought some friends with me this time…"

His warm breath skims my ear, sending shivers down my spine. I open my eyes and look in the direction of his voice, but he's not there. I look all around me but I can't see him anywhere… I make my way over to Al and ask him to get me a firewhiskey. I know that Landen and Freddie set a charm limit of one on the firewhiskey, and I've already had my one. Al, however, has not. He comes back and hands me the bottle. I politely thank him and walk back to the couch. I pop the top off the bottle and drain the warming liquid in two solid gulps.

I look around again for Castor, but to no avail. I do, however, see Landen and Freddie walking toward me.

Landen sees the look of confusion on my face and rushes over. "Is everything alright? Are you okay?"

I nod my head distractedly. "Yea I'm fine."

"Okay… Do you want to go dance?"

I nod my head again and smile politely. We walk out into the middle of the room, leaving Freddie sitting alone on the couch. I wrap my arms around his neck and he wraps his arms around my waist.

I bring my hand forward and play with a piece of his dark hair. "Your hair is getting pretty long. I like it."

He laughs and grabs a bit of my hair, bringing it up and tickling my face with it. "So is yours. I'm not a fan of it."

I smack him in the chest and roll my eyes. "You prat."

I look around again and catch a glimpse of Castor again. He is leaning against a wall with his arms crossed, smirking at Landen and me. I drop my arms from Landen's neck and step toward the area where I saw Castor leaning. Someone steps in front of me and blocks my path and my view. I push around the person and see that the wall is empty. I slap my hand to my forehead and grunt. _Am I going mental or something?_

Landen grabs my arm and gives me a confused look. "Is everything okay?"

I nod, still staring at the empty wall. "I think I'm going to head out now…"

He nods firmly and places his hand on my back. "Okay, let's go then."

"No, no. I don't want to steal you away from your awesome party. I will be fine on my own." I shake my head and push his arm away.

He laughs. "Fine then. Will you at least help me get Freddie back to the tower? He's rather pissed… Apparently, after he reached his firewhiskey limit, he started stealing other people's drinks."

A giggle escapes my lips and I nod. "Yea, I guess I can do that."

We walk back over to the couch and Freddie puts his arm around my shoulders. "This is a lovely soiree."

He wraps his other arm around Landen's shoulder and whispers something. Landen laughs loudly and shakes his head. "You're a right git, you know that?"

We guide him out into the corridor and Freddie looks back at me. "He called me a git… That wasn't very nice."

I laugh and shake my head. "I know Freddie-o. I will get him back later for you."

Freddie smiles and gives me sloppy kiss on the cheek then whispers "You're my best mate ever." After that, we walk to the tower in silence. Once we get in the Gryffindor common room, Freddie releases my shoulder and smiles. "I'm going to bed."

I let out another laugh and Landen shakes his head. "Let's get you upstairs…"

I walk to a couch in the common room and sit down. I close my eyes and think back to the first time I encountered Castor Perlorn.

_Carter and I walk into the great hall and sit down. We are busy putting food on our plate and talking about our plans for the day when someone behind us says "Wow Carter. First you lose us the match and then you turn your back on your family for the filthy American. You must be screwing her big time, Carter."_

_I look at Carter, whose fists are clenched at his sides. He is trying to remain calm but I can tell it's not working. I turn around to see who is talking to us. The boy is around six foot one with black greased back hair and a round nose. His mouth is twisted up into a sneer. I recognize him instantly. This is the beater who hit the bludger that hurt Carter. I jump up and pull my wand out of my boots. I point it directly at his pig nose and say, "If you utter one more word about that match I will make sure it's the last thing you say. Try me."_

_The pig nosed boy laughs. "She's a feisty one Carter, I'll give you that. I might have to give her a go after you're done with her." At that Carter jump up from his seat, wand also pointed at the boy's face._

_I turn to Carter and grab his arm. "Carter he's not worth it. Let's go." He turns his head and looks at me, confusion etched on his face. I quickly look up at McGonagall, who is watching our exchange closely, then back down. He catches my hint and drops his wand._

"_Alright, let's go then." He says as he follows me out. I can tell that he is still angry, so I suggest that we go change out of our pajamas and into regular clothes. He nods his agreement and I suggest he go first. It will give him time to cool off. We walk to the slytherine house together in silence. He goes into the dorms to change and I wait outside in the corridor for him._

_I see a shadow coming down the hall, but I don't really pay attention to it. Suddenly I hear "Well if it isn't the filthy American… You know, although you are American you are rather pretty…" He steps closer to me, each step slow and calculated. "I think I want to find out why Carter thought screwing you was a good enough reason to turn his back on his family." His face twists into a sneer as he stands in front of me. I stand up and put my hands up while trying to back away. The boy grabs my wrist and shoves me against the wall, forcing a grunt of pain to escape my lips. He continues to grasp my wrist tightly while his other hand comes up and gently strokes my face._

_Then, out of nowhere, he brings his hand up and then back down, his ring cutting my cheek as his hand collides across my face. I can feel the hot, sticky blood running down my cheek. The boy brings his finger up and touches the blood drip with a laugh. _

"_Um… Carter? Could you hurry please?" I say uneasily. I look around trying to find an escape, but I don't see any. There aren't any shadows for me to hide in so getting away is going to be next to impossible._

_The boy slowly bends over and goes to pull my wand out of my boot. "You won't be needing this for what I have planned, American." His face is near my knee, so I bring it up. It connects with his face, knocking him backward. He clutches his broken nose in pain. I take the opportunity to run away._

"_Carter!" I yell while running._

_The boy slowly gets back up and runs after me. I look back and see him running after me, pure rage and hatred written on his face. "CARTER!"_

_He reaches out and grabs my hair with a bloody hand, pulling me to the ground. I hit the ground with a thud. He grabs my wrist again and pulls me up. "That was rude, and now, you will pay." He says with a menacing grin. He brings his hand up again and smacks me across the face again with such power it knocks me to the ground, opening up a new gash on my face. "CARTER!" I screech desperately._

_The boy pulls out his wand and points it at me. I curl up on the ground, making sure the boy can't see the apparent fear on my face. He kicks me in such a way that makes me flip flat on my back. He slashes his wand violently, yelling a spell, causing a large cut to appear across my stomach. I lie on my back, blood beginning to pool around me._

_Suddenly I hear "EXPELLIARMUS!" from behind me. I chance a glance up and see Freddie standing behind me, his wand pointed at the boy, anger filling his brown eyes. "JAMES! She's over here!" he yells over his shoulder. The slytherine boy tries to back away slowly but Freddie looks at him again. "Go ahead Perlorn. Run away. That makes killing you so much more fun." The boy takes it as a challenge and runs away. Freddie smiles devilishly and chases after him._

_James comes running around the corner at full speed. He sees me on the ground and runs over to me, falling down to his knees next to me. He grabs my chin and looks at my face. He rubs his thumb over the cuts on my cheek, wiping away the blood still running down my face. He finally looks down at what he is kneeling in; his eyes get wide as he realizes it's my blood. A look of panic crosses his face and he yells "Help! Somebody help!"_

_I hear someone running toward us, then hear James yell "No! Go get Madam Pomfrey!"_

_The footsteps quickly fade away. James pulls off his sweater and places it on the cut on my stomach while applying pressure to the wound. I can see he is starting to lose his cool so I reach up and place a blood covered on top of his and smile weakly._

_My eyes slowly begin to close and my world goes black._

I hear someone coming down the stairs that lead to the boy's dorms which snaps me out of my flashback. Landen hops off the last stair with a book in his hand and sighs. "Party boy Freddie is all tucked in. Are you okay?"

I nod with a laugh. "Merlin! I'm fine, Landen."

He looks at me warily. "Okay… Are you going to go back to the party?"

"No, things were getting a bit too weird for me."

He nods. "Okay. Well neither am I. I'm going to go change."

He turns to walk away, leaving his back open. I take the opportunity and launch myself at him. I wrap my arms around his neck, clinging to his back, and point at the entrance to the Heads dorm with a laugh. "To my room!"

He laughs and shakes his head. "I want to go change clothes!"

I smack him on the head with a laugh. "You have clothes in my room! Now: To my room!"

He concedes with another laugh and wraps his arms underneath my knees to hold me up. "Fine! But only because we're best mates and I love you."

I grin at my success as he walks us through the entrance. He walks us into my room and drops me off. I walk over to my dresser and toss him a shirt and some shorts. I grab a pair of sweats and a t-shirt and head into my bathroom to change. I slip out of my dress and into my sweats and t-shirt, then walk back out into my room. Landen rolls his eyes at me and goes into my bathroom to change too.

The book he came down the stairs with is sitting on my bed. I pick it up and read the title. _Defense against dark magic?_

I sit down onto my bed and open the book, reading the first page. The door to my bathroom opens and Landen walks out holding his clothes from the party.

I turn to the next page of the book and frown. "Why are you reading this?"

He walks over and grabs a pillow. He sets the pillow against my leg and lies down with his head on the pillow. He then reaches up and snatches the book from me with a grin. "To be prepared I guess. You can never be too prepared, right?"

I nod my head as I think about the fact that Castor Perlorn could potentially be back. He opens his book and starts reading. I twirl my fingers through his hair absentmindedly as I stare at the wall.

**Landen's POV**

With his arm draped around my shoulder, Freddie leans over and whispers "You should tell her you fancy her. If you don't I will."

I let out a loud laugh and shake my head. "You're a right git, you know that?"

Ariana and I lead him into the corridor and he looks over to her. "He called me a git… That wasn't very nice."

She laughs and shakes her head. "I know Freddie-o. I will get him back later for you."

Freddie smiles crookedly and plants a wet kiss on her cheek. He whispers something to her and she smiles. We finish our trek to Gryffindor tower in silence. Once we get into the common room, Freddie lets go of Ariana's shoulder and smiles. "I'm going to bed."

She laughs as I shake my head and tug on his arm. "Let's get you upstairs."

I drag Freddie up the stairs and help him to his bed. He crawls under the covers and smirks at me. "You really do need to tell her, mate."

I shake my head and laugh. "Fred, she's been through a lot. I don't want her to think I'm taking I'm trying to rush her into anything."

He grabs my arm tightly and looks at me with wide eyes. "You need to tell her before it is too late."

I nod and wriggle out of his grip. "Okay, okay."

He smiles at his victory and closes his eyes. After a few seconds he is snoring loudly. I quietly make my way to my room, grab my book, and head downstairs. I get to the bottom stair and see Ariana on the couch. "Party boy Freddie is all tucked in. Are you okay?"

She nods and laughs. "Merlin! I'm fine, Landen."

I look at her cautiously. "Okay… Are you going to go back to the party?"

She shakes her head and looks at the fire. "No, things were getting a bit too weird for me."

I nod in agreement. "Okay. Well neither am I. I'm going to go change."

I turn to walk to my room when I feel something jump onto my back with a laugh. "To my room!"

I respond with a laugh and shake my head. "I want to go change clothes!"

She smacks me on the head and laughs. "You have clothes in my room! Now: To my room!"

I realize that she has a point and my resolve fades. I wrap my arms under her legs to keep her up and sigh. "Fine! But only because we're best mates and I love you."

I walk us into the Heads dorm, into her room and drop her off. She walks over to her dresser and tosses me a shirt and some shorts. She grabs some clothes and goes into her bathroom to change. Once she's changed, she walks back out into her room. She is in a pair of grey sweats and a red t-shirt. _Even in THAT she looks lovely._

I roll my eyes to hide the fact that I was staring at her and head into the bathroom. I quickly change into the clothes she gave me and then check to make sure I look alright. My shaggy, dark hair is a mess. I quickly run my fingers through it and sigh. _I'm such a bloody girl…_

I gather up my clothes and exit the bathroom. I toss them into the corner and Ariana says "Why are you reading this?"

I walk over and grab a pillow off her bed and set it against her leg. I lie down, my head on the pillow. I reach up and snatch the book from her hands with a grin. "To be prepared I guess. You can never be too prepared, right?"

She nods her head distractedly. I open my book and begin reading. She drops a hand down and begins playing with my hair. I close my eyes and take a deep breath. It's taking everything I have not to kiss her right now. _Bloody hell…_

I reach up and grab her hand. "You're going to have to stop doing that…"

She lets out a laugh. "Sorry…" The room fills with silence after that.

Suddenly her hand comes down and she pokes me in the side with a giggle. I squeak escapes my lips and my body jerks away in response which makes her laugh more. I sit up and glare at her playfully. "What was that for?"

She grins. "That was for calling Freddie a git. Plus I thoroughly enjoy the noise you make when I poke you in the side…"

I shake my head and smirk at her. "Ariana it is SO on…"

I extend a finger toward her but she moves out of its way. I do it again and she dodges it again. She laughs loudly at me. "You're so slow!"

I feign hurt. "Ariana! That's it… I'm out of here! I can't take your abuse anymore."

I get up off the bed and internally laugh at her expression as I walk away from her bed. I hear movement from her bed and then she jumps on me, sending us crashing to the floor in a fit of laughter. I land flat on my back and she lands on her side next to me. I let out another laugh and rub my back. "What was that for?"

"I don't want you to leave."

I nod at her and smile. "Alright I'll stay, but only because you asked so nicely. And by 'asked nicely' I mean tackled me to the ground."

I get up off the ground and help her up. She shrugs nonchalantly. "You know me, always polite."

I roll my eyes and laugh. "Absolutely…"

She sits on her bed and looks at the ground. "Lan, I have a question for you."

"Shoot."

"So… I think I saw Castor at the party tonight. I'm not too sure though since I DID drink two bottles of firewhiskey."

I shake my head seriously. "Ariana, alcohol doesn't make you hallucinate. It may screw you up a bit, but not that bad. Are you sure it was him and not someone who just looked like him?"

She nods. "I'm pretty sure…" Her hand goes to her abdomen.

I give her a quizzical look but she shakes her head. "I'll tell you in the morn-" She stops abruptly and looks around with wide eyes. She brings her hand up to her mouth and runs to the bathroom. The bathroom door violently swings shut behind her. I can hear her retching behind the closed door.

I knock on the door gently. "Are you alright?"

She retches again then groans. "Yea, just peachy. THIS is why I don't drink… I think I'm going to be in here for a while…" She heaves again and follows with another groan. "I BLOODY HATE PUKING!"

I walk into the bathroom and chuckle. "You really are a lightweight! You only had two firewhiskeys!"

She flips me off and pukes again. I sit down next to her and try to ignore the repugnant odor that has filled the bathroom. I rub circles on her back as she grips the toilet tightly. She takes a deep breath and looks at me. "You really don't have to stay. This is going to be rather gross."

I shake my head. "And leave you like this? That wouldn't make me much of a gentleman now would it."

She lets out a laugh and then shoots me a quick glare before she pukes again. "I appreciate the sentiment, 'gentleman', but I would rather you weren't in here for this."

I hold up my hands in surrender and nod. "Okay, okay. But if you need ANYTHING, you know what to do."

She nods and I leave the bathroom. I am about to leave her room and go to my own when I realize that I don't want to leave her alone like this. So I crawl onto her bed and fall asleep.

**Blegh. I'm not really sure how I feel about this chapter... It seems a bit slow and boring, but it had to be done. Things are going to pick up in the next chapter, I promise.**

**I would love to hear your thoughts about the chapter!**

**Thanks! :)**

**-Tx**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 7**

**Ari's POV**

I wake up lying on the stone floor clutching the cold, white porcelain basin. I groan and roll onto my back. I pull off the blanket that covers me and stand up. I examine myself in the mirror and groan again. My disheveled hair is pulled up into a messy bun with random strands hanging out and my face is still a bit pallid, making the soft freckles on my nose more prominent. I turn on the tap and splash some cold water on my face then I take my hair down and run a brush through it. I continue to look at myself with disgust and decide a shower is just what I need.

After spending an eternity in the shower, I step out and dry off. I wrap my towel around myself and walk out to my room. I hear snoring coming from my bed so I look over there. Curled up on his side on the middle of my bed is a sleeping Landon. I smirk and tip toe over to my dresser. I get a new set of clothes and silently make my way back to the bathroom. I get dressed and grab my toothbrush then I brush my teeth at least three times, each time trying to get the imaginary vomit taste out of my mouth. After I feel that I've adequately cleaned off last night's nastiness, I dry my hair and put it into a braid. I look at my watch and frown. _7:56 am…_

I pick up the blanket I was covered with and quietly open the bathroom door, tiptoeing out into my room and tossing the blanket over into Landen's party clothes pile from last night. I grab my Gryffindor quidditch blanket out of my trunk and silently walk over to my bed, draping the blanket over Landen. He shifts slightly as the blanket touches him. I get on my bed and grab his _Defense Against Dark Magic _book. I open the book and start from where I left off yesterday.

(Break)

I finish the book and set it down on my dresser. I look at my watch again. _10:35 am…_

I grab a pillow and raise it up, ready to hit him with it, when I remember that he DID try to take care of me last night. _I should probably be nice…_

I set the pillow down with a sigh and scoot up behind him, resting my chin on his shoulder. I grab the end of my braid and lightly drag it over his face, the tips of my hair softly dancing across his nose. "Hey Lan. Time to get up…"

He slaps at my hand and groans. I let out a chuckle and tickle his face again earning another groan. He opens his eyes and yawns. "Obviously you're feeling better?"

I nod with a grin. "In fact, I am. Thank you for the blanket by the way."

He turns onto his back and I prop myself up on his chest with my forearms. His stormy grey eyes watch me intently as he says, "You're welcome. Now… Tell me about what happened with Castor." I raise an eyebrow at him and begin to protest, but he shakes his head. "You promised…"

I groan and roll my eyes. "Fine! But I'm hungry so it's going to be the quick version." He nods with a smirk and I delve into my story. He lets me finish my story before he asks any questions and, when he does ask questions, it's a minimal amount.

After he's asked all his questions, we sit in silence. Not for long though, because after a few moments my stomach grumbles loudly. Landen laughs and we decide to go down to the kitchen. We leave my room and get into the Gryffindor common room only to find Monroe and her little follower, Ashlynn Silverton, sitting on one of the couches talking about James. They catch sight of Landen and me leaving and get up off the couch. Monroe stands in front of me and Ashlynn steps in front of Landen, looking him up and down hungrily. I can understand why she would look at him though. He is a tall six foot one with black hair that is messily strewn about from sleeping on it. His grey eyes are full of confidence and his lips are constantly set in a slight smile. His tan skin contrasts against the white t-shirt he is wearing and, with his arms crossed, his muscles are accentuated. He really is quite attractive, even after just rolling out of bed.

Landen smirks at Ashlynn. "Like what you see, do you?"

Ashlynn blushes then regains her composure. "No. Just trying to figure out why you would spend the night in THAT nasty slut's room."

Monroe laughs icily and glares at me. "That's exactly why, dear Ashlynn. It's because she's a nasty slut!"

I chuckle and shake my head. "Yea… I'M the slut. Oh by the way! How's Rylan?"

She narrows her eyes more and steps toward me with her fists clenched. "That was a mistake. How dare you bring that up!"

Landen laughs loudly. "A mistake! Which part? The cheating or the getting caught?"

"That's none of your business!" she says as she turns her icy glare to Landen.

I shake my head again and laugh. "The only mistake was that James actually took you back."

Her glare turns to a sneer as she turns back to me. "Oh dear sweet Ariana… You really aren't over James, are you? Is that why you're shagging this lovely boy?"

Landen flips her off which causes a laugh to erupt from my lips. "Yea… He's really 'lovely'..."

Landen laughs and grabs my arm. "Come on Ariana. As fun as this is, I'm starved." Monroe shoots me another glare and stomps away but Ashlynn stays put. She continues to stare at Landen as we walk away so he gives her a wink as we exit the common room. I can see the blush crawling up her face as the portrait swings shut.

As soon as the portrait shuts we burst into a fit of laughter. I push him playfully and say with a giggle. "Now you're never going to be able to get rid of her!"

He shrugs his shoulders with a grin. "Who can blame her? I'm a great catch!"

I roll my eyes. "Oh Merlin…"

He grabs my hand and pulls me down the corridor. "Seriously, I'm starved." As he pulls me along, we pass a corridor with a familiar silhouette in it. I tug Landen's hand and pull him to a stop. He turns with a pleading look on his face, silently begging me to just let him go to the kitchen and eat, but I look at him and gesture for him to be quiet. I silently pull him down the corridor behind me, hiding him in the shadows so that the figure doesn't see him. Once I feel like Landen is close enough to be able to hear what's going on without being seen, I push him into the shadow of a suit of armor and tell him to be quiet. He squeezes my hand and nods.

I take a deep breath and walk forward a few more feet. "What are you doing here, Castor?"

A low throaty chuckle comes from directly in front of me and he steps forward, exposing the face I remember from two years ago. His dark hair is greased back, his pig-like nose scrunched up and his thin lips pulled up into a sneer. He has his arms crossed tightly across his chest, his muscles strained against his shirt. "Well, well. If it isn't the filthy American…"

I scoff and shake my head. Just looking at him brings back all my feelings of hatred and loathing. "What is with your family and calling me 'American'? I have a name you know!"

His sneer turns into a look of disgust as he angrily says "Don't you DARE put that… that TRAITORin with my family! We are step brothers and you would do well to remember that."

"Oh I remember. He's a bloody BRILLIANT person AND wizard and YOU'LL do well to remember THAT." I realize that I have my finger in his face as I say this. I glare at him and drop my hand.

He smiles a cynical smile and steps forward. "Interesting… So how's Carter nowadays?"

I clench my fist and grit my teeth, realizing he's just looking for a reaction. "Still dead. Thanks for asking."

"Damn. You might want to tell that step brother of mine to watch out then. I have a feeling he might be joining your dead friends next…" He says with a smirk as he steps forward again. Now he is standing directly in front of me, making me very uncomfortable. Every alarm in my head is telling me to run but I refuse to back down. I just stand there, glaring at him. He bends down and inhales deeply. "Just as I remember…"

I grunt as push on him with as much force as I can muster, but he doesn't budge. He does, however, get angry with me and bring the back of his hand crashing into my face. The noise it makes reverberates throughout the corridor. "Don't you DARE touch me you filthy American!"

I kick him in the crotch and back away with a laugh. "Just like old times huh Perlorn? But I guess you DID say you wanted to pick up where we left off… Better watch what you wish for. PS: Don't you DARE threaten Landen EVER again you big loathsome oaf."

He growls and lunges at me. I barely miss his attack as I sprint away from him with a laugh and back toward Landen. Suddenly I'm being pulled into the shadows and behind a suit of armor. Then a hand covers my mouth and an arm wraps around my waist securely. "Nice insult…"

I smile and nod. Castor runs past us and stops at the end of the corridor. He looks left then looks right and lets out an anger filled roar. "I WILL FIND YOU, FILTH!"

He runs to the right and disappears from our view. Landen releases my mouth and waist with a laugh. "Do you just enjoy annoying people?"

I let out a giggle and nod. "I MAY find SOME joy in it…"

We walk out of the corridor and hear pounding footsteps coming toward us. We turn around and see Castor running toward us at full speed. Landen and I look at each other and break into a sprint. Castor's booming voice echoes throughout the corridor. "There's no use running! I'm going to break your little neck American!"

I grab Landen's hand and pull him to the left down a dark corridor. I had patrolled this corridor once before last year and I know that there is a small closet somewhere down here. I also know that it can fit two people because I caught two third years snogging in it after curfew. I see the door and grin as I speed up. I grab the handle and yank the door open. I shove Landen inside then follow behind him and swing the door shut.

I grab Landen's arm and let out a laugh as we hear Castor run by. He covers my mouth again with a sigh. He leans forward from the stack of chests that he's sitting on and whispers "I have a question for you."

"Mphm."

He chuckles quietly and keeps his hand over my mouth. "I'm going to assume that was permission to ask my question?" I nod my head and he sighs again. "Did you mean what you said back there?"

I pull his hand off my mouth and look at him. "What? That I think he's a big loathsome oaf?"

He stifles a laugh and shakes his head. "No, I already knew that. I meant, do you really think I'm a good person?"

I shake my head and a slightly sad expression crosses his face. "No. I think you're a _brilliant_ person. And wizard! You'd have to be to put up with the likes of me!"

A small smile tugs at the corners of his mouth and then he grabs my face and mashes his lips to mine. It takes me a moment to realize what's happening but when I do I have tons of thoughts that run through my head. I think of James. I think about how I'm tired of waiting for James to remember me. I think about how selfish it is of me to be thinking about James right now when Landen is clearly kissing me. I think about how great Landen is and what a great friend he has been. I think about how guilty I had felt when I first realized that I fancy Landen. I think about how Landen is STILL kissing me… What is wrong with me? How long has it been? How long have we and been like this? _Shit Ariana! Just kiss him already!_

I sigh at my incessant thinking and wrap my arms around his neck, pressing my lips back against his feverishly. The kiss starts out slow, almost nervous but escalates into something more desperate. His hands travel to my waist, gripping it tightly and closing any lingering space we had between us.

I can faintly hear footsteps coming down the corridor, but I can't think about anything or focus on anything but this.

My lips move against his fervently, opening my mouth when he swept his tongue along my bottom lip. I move my hands to his head and tangle my fingers in his hair as I grip the back of his head, crushing his lips against mine. Landen breaks away, lightly tugging at my bottom lip as he does. He rests his forehead on mine and we sit there, staring at each other and breathing heavily. He plants another soft kiss on my lips and I smirk. "Took you long enough…"

Suddenly we are bathed in bright light as the door to the closet opens. We look over and see Freddie standing in front of us with a big grin on his face, a piece of parchment in one hand and his wand in the other. "Well what do we have here?" He points his wand at the parchment and says "Mischief managed..."

**Alright, so I realize we haven't heard from James for a while. I think I'm going to give you his POV in the next chapter...**

**I told yall this chapter was going to be a bit more interesting! :) As always, I would absolutely love to hear your thoughts and opinions about this chapter!**

**Thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far anf thank you to those who have added this story to their favorites! I appreciate yalls support!**

**-Tx**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 8**

**Ari's POV**

"_Expelliarmus!" The spells flies from the end of my wand toward the person across from me. There is only darkness around us so, due to the lack of visibility, our spells are sporadic and wild. The only way I know if this fight is over is if I hear my opponent shoot another spell or respond._

_I take a deep breath and listen for any form of a response, only to be greeted by silence. I've been at this for what feels like hours and I'm exhausted. I highly hope this fight is finally over… I lower my wand and release a big huff of air._

"_Avada Kedavra!"_

_I flick up my wand quickly and say "Protego!" The spell ricochets off my wand into the black abyss around us. I slash my wand and yell "Sectumsempra!" I hear loud, desperate screams full of pain and agony as my spell hits my opponent. The screams continue, tugging at my stomach as I realize I'm the reason this person is hurting so bad. The screams become gurgled and then stop._

_One by one, torches light around us, finally revealing my location. I look around me and see that I'm standing in one of the corridors at Hogwarts, stone walls on either side of me. It's not a corridor I recognize though, but it's definitely Hogwarts._

_The soft glow of the torches has also revealed who my opponent was. I take a deep breath and slowly lower my eyes to the body that is sprawled out on the ground sitting in a pool of thick blood. I take slow, calculated steps toward the body, my shoes slopping through the blood as I go. I bend down and flip the person over, exposing my opponents face and coating my hand in warm, sticky blood. I gasp as I see Bella's face on the dead body, her eyes reflecting the pain she felt and her mouth stuck in a permanent scream. I stumble backwards and bring my blood covered hand up to my mouth._

_Suddenly Bella's face morphs into my mother's face, her expression the same as Bella's was. I take a step forward and lower down again. I brush a strand of her blood caked hair out of her face and then let out a scream when the face morphs again, this time into Rachelle's face. The face quickly changes from Rachelle to Astoria, then to Carter, then to my father, then back to Bella._

_I reach out and close Bella's eyes. "I'm sorry Bells…"_

_At that moment, Bella's eyes open and she lets out more pain and agony filled screams, her back arching off the ground as her hands desperately claw at the stone floor. Her cries of pain fill the corridor and reverberate off the walls. I clasp my hands over my ears and back away from her. I can feel warm tears streaming down my face as I try to escape the screams. "STOP! PLEASE!" I turn and run away from the shrieks, only to see a familiar silhouette at the end of the corridor running toward me._

_Nobody is keeping me in this corridor… Not even that oaf Castor!_

_I swipe my wand again and say "Sectumsempra!"_

_The person at the end of the corridor drops to the ground and begins writhing around in pain. I catch up to them and point my wand at Castor's face. Except, the face doesn't belong to Castor… It belongs to Landen!_

"_SHIT!" I drop my wand and fall to my knees, pressing my hands firmly to the large cut that is slashed across his chest. "No, no, no, no… NO! Please stop bleeding!" His blood is flowing steadily out of the cut and pooling on the ground. He shakily reaches a hand up and touches my face, the pain in his eyes subsiding as his head falls against the ground lifelessly._

_Bella's cries of pain still echo throughout the corridor as someone aggressively grabs the back of my shirt and hoists me up. They roughly kick Landen's bloody body and then turn me around to face them. I narrow my eyes as I come face to face with James Potter, sneering as he says. "I win."_

I stretch my hand out to the side and feel for Landen, but to no avail. I shoot upright, sweat matting my hair to my face, and the first thing I see is James staring at me with an odd look on his face. _That asshole… _I glare at him and do the first thing that comes to mind; ball my hands and solidly punch him in the nose.

**James' POV**

"OW! Bloody hell Ariana!" I gently place my hands over my nose and glare at her. Warm blood runs down over my lips, dripping into my hands as I hold it. "What was that for?"

She clasps her hands over her mouth and her eyes widen. "James! I'm so sorry! I was having a nightmare and… I'm so sorry! Does it hurt too terribly?"

I laugh and nod. "Of course it hurts! You just punched me in the nose!"

"Oh… Right… I really am sorry… Wait, what are you even doing in here?"

"I was in my room when I heard screaming coming from your room. I came in to see if you were okay." I walk to her bathroom and flick on the light. I look in the mirror and wince. _My nose is definitely broken…_

Ariana walks into the bathroom behind me and grimaces. "Come here and let me see it."

"Like hell! I'm not letting you anywhere NEAR my nose!" I say with a skeptical laugh.

She rolls her eyes and grabs my face, jerking it down so that we're eye level. Her bright green eyes dart around my face as she examines my nose, tilting my face every now and then to get a better look at it. She's so close I can see that she has light brown freckles sprinkles across her nose, and her green eyes have flecks of blue in them. She points a finger at me and says "Don't move." She leaves the bathroom for a few seconds and then comes back with her wand in hand. She raises the wand and steps toward me, causing me to take a step back. She puts her hands on her hips and gives me a firm look. "Get your ass back here now."

I shake my head and say "Like hell!"

She steps forward. "Do you want me to punch you in the nose again?" I shake my head rapidly and she grins. "Then get over here."

I step to her and bend over a bit so that she and I are eye level again. She points her wand at my nose and says "Episkey."

I can feel the swelling in my nose go down and the blood stops running from my nose. I turn from her to the mirror and inspect my face. _It looks good as new! _"Thanks…"

She tucks her wand behind her ear and smirks. "Maybe next time you'll knock before entering."

I nod with a chuckle. "Absolutely. How are you doing?"

"I'm fine." Her answer is concise and a bit edgy, which doesn't really convince me that she's "fine".

"Do you want to talk about it?"

She splashes some cold water on her face and shakes her head. "Nope. Look I'm really sorry about your nose, and I appreciate you coming to check on me, but-"

I hold up my hand and nod. "I get it. I'm going to head back to my room but, if you need anything, you know where to find me."

She nods her thanks while picking up her brush and I exit her bathroom. I walk out of her room and, as soon as I pull her bedroom door shut, I hear something shattering. I hesitate by the door for a moment but decide that if she had wanted company, she wouldn't have sent me out. I cross the common room, passing Landen as I do. I grab his arm and say "Your girlfriend has a hell of a right hook." He grins and I release his arm, finishing the trek to my own room. I climb into my bed and lie down, silently hoping I will be able to fall back asleep.

**Ari's POV**

"_I get it. I'm going to head back to my room but, if you need anything, you know where to find me."_

I nod to him and pick up my brush as he leaves my bathroom. I stand silently in my bathroom, still clutching my brush and waiting for the sound of my door to close. As soon as I hear the clicking of the door I take a deep breath then throw the brush I'm holding with a grunt, shattering the mirror across from me. Glass shards from the mirror fall to the floor, tinkling as they hit the cold hard stone. I slide down the wall behind me until I'm sitting and glare at the glass shards on the ground, my nightmare replaying again in my head.

What the HELL had that stupid nightmare meant? My parents and dead friends were normally the subjects of my sick dreams, but this time they involved James AND Landen… Not only had the twisted little dream involved them, but it even went as far as to make James seem like the villain… I let out another grunt. _WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH ME?_

The door to my bathroom opens and I hear a chuckle. "I thought we were done throwing things?"

I roll my eyes and flip him off. "Shut up Landen…"

He extends his hand out to me and sighs. "Come on, let's go talk about it. We'll clean_ this_ little mess up later."

I grab his hand and sigh as he helps me off the ground. We walk out to my room and sit on the ground, our backs leaning against my bed. I look at my watch and frown. _6:23 am…_

Landen clears his throat and takes the wand out from behind my ear. "So, before you tell me about your nightmare, I've got to ask… Where and why did you punch James?"

I let out a laugh and look at him in disbelief. "How do you know about that?"

He winks at me with a grin. "I have my ways…"

"Oh Merlin! Do you want to hear about the nightmare or not?"

"Hold on!" He laughs and jumps on my bed, laying on his stomach with his forearms propping him up. "I wanted to get more comfortable. Now you can tell me."

I smirk and roll my eyes. "Alright well since you're so eager…"

**James' POV**

"Dammit!" I sit up and pound my fists on the bed. I've been laying here for an hour and I haven't been able to fall back asleep. I get out of bed and cross the room to look at the time. _7:23 am…_

I sigh and put my wand in my pocket. I grab the invisibility cloak and leave the Heads dorm. I take a few turns and some stairs and see the door to the astronomy tower is locked. I pull out my wand and whisper "Alohamora."

The lock clicks open. I grab the handle and pull the door open. I ascend the stairs and come to the first level of the astronomy tower. I inhale the fresh air around me and smile. I am about to go up to the next level when I hear talking.

"Andromeda, I can handle this. That little American filth may have changed a bit since I last saw her, but she's nothing I can't handle. She won't get in my way."

Andromeda responds with a slight French accent. "Good. Do not fail zee Dark Lord, Castor."

Castor laughs icily. "Don't tell me what to do, Andromeda. You may be Caledon's little bitch but that doesn't make you the boss of me."

" 'Ow dare you speak zee Dark Lord's name! I would rip your insignificant little tongue out of your mouth if we didn't need you for zis!"

Suddenly my foot slips from one of the stairs, making a scraping sound. Caledon growls and says "Go Andromeda. We aren't alone…"

Then there are footsteps coming down the stairs. I stand at the bottom of the stairs, immobilized, as Castor walks down the stairs toward me. "Well hello Potter… Fancy seeing you here. I hear the American has replaced you with my dimwitted step brother."

I look at him curiously. "The American?"

He raises an eyebrow and smirks. "Ariana? Ariana Brighton? You two were practically attached at the hip fifth year…"

"I just met Ariana at the end of last year…"

His smirk turns to a knowing grin. "Interesting… Well, as much as I would like to stay and catch up, I don't have the time. You, however, might want to go find a radio. I have a feeling something important is going to be broadcast soon and you're definitely going to want to hear it…"

**Ari's POV**

"…Then I woke up, saw James staring at me and, still upset from my bloody nightmare, I punched him in the nose. I broke his nose, healed his nose, and broke a mirror. Now you're caught up."

Landen laughs and raises his eyebrows at me. "Let me get this straight, you killed me off in your dream? Was snogging in the closet yesterday really so bad that you had to kill me?"

I nod with a grin, taking Landen's hand. "Oh it was absolutely abhorrent."

He rolls his eyes and opens his mouth to say something, only to be interrupted by my bedroom door opening. James rushes in and shuts the door. "Where's your radio?"

I shake my head at James. "Do you not believe in knocking or something?"

"WHERE IS YOUR RADIO?" He starts digging through my stuff and I get up from my floor, releasing Landen's hand, and grab James' arm. He looks at me with furrowed eyebrows. "Please, where is your radio?"

"If you stop digging through my stuff, I'll show you where it's at." I walk into my bathroom, almost stepping on the broken glass, and grab my radio from a drawer in there. I walk back out and toss the radio to James, taking a seat on my bed next to Landen.

James plugs in the radio and turns it on. All we hear is crackling at first so Landen leans over and says "Was our kiss really that bad?"

I look at him with a smirk and plant a kiss on his nose. "Not at all, it was actually quite pleasant… I just really enjoy toying with you."

He rolls his eyes again and wraps his arms around me. "You're bloody awful, you know that?"

"SHHH!" James turns and glares at us, gesturing for us to be quiet as the crackling dissipates and is replaced by an all too familiar voice. I look at Landen and gasp. "Caledon…"

"…_You all disgust me with your false sense of security and entitlement that you walk around with. You ALL deserve to die and I plan to make sure that happens. I will make sure you all suffer as I kill you, I will make sure you know pain and experience fear at just the mention of my name. You will never feel safe, no matter where you go. I will haunt you in your every waking moment. You will live in constant fear of Lord Caledon… I hope you're ready, because there's a war coming…"_

The radio cuts out and we all sit in silence looking at each other, desperately trying to make sense of what we just heard.

**That's pretty intense, right? haha I wonder what's going to happen next!**

**I would like to thank everyone who reviewed the last chapter and urge yall to let me know what you thought about this chapter! :)**

**I would also like to apologize in advance because I'm not going to be able to update for about a week since I have finals next week that I need to study for. Sorry yall! I will be back to updating once finals are over though, I promise!**

**I really appreciate yalls support with this story!**

**Thanks! :)**

**-Tx**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 9**

**Ari's POV**

"Did we miss something? Who is he talking about?" I look at Landen and frown.

He shrugs his shoulders and shakes his head. "Don't look at me. He didn't tell me anything about this last year… I more dealt with Andromeda Clarimonde than Caledon himself anyways."

James jumps up with wide eyes and looks at Landen. "Am I hearing you both correctly? HE personally knows 'Dark Lord Caledon'?"

Landen shakes his head and smirks. "Obviously you AREN'T hearing us correctly because I said I dealt with Andromeda, not Caledon."

James points an accusing finger at me and glowers. "You knew this about him and you still trust him? You're willing to put everyone here in danger just so you can have a bloody boyfriend? He's a bloody Death Eater!"

"Excuse me? EXCUSE ME?" I can feel my temper rising the more I look at him. "YOU don't know anything about me OR Landen!" Landen's arms tighten around me a bit, probably as a precaution to keep me from jumping off the bed and attacking James.

"Not according to Castor Perlorn! According to him, you and I were practically joined at the hip! Why didn't you tell me about that, huh? Was that to protect me too?" He is still glaring at me and each of his words carries a world of hatred in it.

I laugh icily. "I didn't tell you about that because you didn't want to hear about it! If it wasn't about Monroe then you didn't care! And…" I try to stand up but Landen holds me down. I frown at him and then turn back to James. "And if you and Perlorn are such great friends then why don't you go talk to HIM about this you bloody prat?"

Landen clears his throat, earning a glare from James, and lets out a laugh. "As entertaining as this is, we still aren't any closer to finding out WHO Caledon was referring to in his radio broadcast."

James shakes his head and walks to my door. "I don't want your help, Death Eater."

I break free from Landen's grip and launch myself at James, getting right in his face and glaring at him. "We're in this together, whether you like it or not so you might want to get used to the idea."

James opens my door and shakes his head. "I don't think so." With that, he leaves my room and shuts the door behind him.

I walk back over and grab Landen's hand. "Come on, we need to go talk to McGonagall. She might know something about this…"

We leave my room and rush through the common room and out into the corridor. We quickly walk up to the gargoyle that leads up to McGonagall's office and look around. The gargoyle opens its mouth and lazily says "Password?"

I sigh and smile nervously. "Well, we don't have it… BUT! This is really important! It's about Caledon!"

The gargoyle shakes its head firmly. "No password, no entry."

I throw my hands in the air with exasperation. "Are you bloody kidding me? The fate of the wizarding world is at stake and YOU won't let me in to talk to McGonagall because I don't have the PASSWORD? Fine… I'm going to get into that office one way or another…"

Landen pulls me away from the gargoyle and into a corridor. He looks at me firmly and says "Cover your ears." I do as he says and he points his wand at a wall and says "Reducto."

The wall explodes loudly, chunks of the stone wall flying everywhere. Landen and I are covered in dust from the explosion. I hear footsteps running toward us and shake my head with a chuckle, dust falling off my head as I do. "You're bloody mental…"

"Probably…" He says with a nod and a grin. He crosses his arms over his chest as he turns to the entrance of the corridor and waits.

As anticipated, Filch comes running around the corner with Mrs. Norris hot on his heels. He stops in front of us and doubles over with long, drawn out wheezes escaping his lips. "Wha' the bloody hell did you do?"

I shrug my shoulders nonchalantly. "We blew up the wall. You're not going to bring us to the headmaster, are you?"

He takes another wheezing breath and stands up straight. "You blew up a wall! Of course I am going to bring you two to the headmaster!"

I shake my head dramatically and frown. "No, please don't…"

He grabs my arm and pulls me behind him. I grab Landen's wrist just before Filch pulls me around the corner of the corridor. "You should have thought about that before you blew a gaping hole in the wall!" He steps in front of the gargoyle and says "Acid Pops."

The gargoyle moves and the stairs ascend and Filch drags us up the stairs. He stops us in front of the office door and tells us to wait while he walks inside, shutting the door behind him. I nudge Landen with my shoulder and smirk. "You could have at least TOLD me about what you were doing… How do you plan to explain that to McGonagall?"

He smirks and shrugs. "I was just going to wing it."

The door to McGonagall's office opens and Filch sneers at us while motioning us into her office. I walk in first and see James sitting in a chair across from McGonagall's desk. "What the hell are you doing here?"

McGonagall doesn't give James the chance to respond. "Why are you two blowing holes in my school!"

"You know, we wouldn't have to do anything that drastic if you were easier to get ahold of. Now, I assume that James has informed you about the radio broadcast we just heard?"

McGonagall huffs and nods tersely. "Yes, he did and he didn't do so by blowing holes in my walls!"

I shrug and smirk. "I'm American, what can I say?"

A small smile tugs at the corners of her mouth as she clears her throat. "This news is a bit troubling, especially since we don't know who he's targeting…"

Landen laughs. "Well what are we going to do about it?"

"Well you three…" She points to me, Landen and James, "…are going to go to breakfast and leave the worrying to me. I will figure out what to do." With that, she waves us out of her office. We walk out of the office and into the corridor. James gives me and Landen one last glare before turning and walking away.

(Break)

Red, blue, green and yellow baubles adorn the corridors with the faint smell of pine emanating from the Christmas trees that decorate the corridors as well. December is one of my favorite months to spend at Hogwarts because the corridors are decorated so ornately and intricately and the castle smells of Christmas all month long.

It's been three months since the radio broadcast, and not much has happened since then. It turns out that, since the broadcast was done so early, not many people heard it. Landen and I had told Al and Freddie about it, but other than that next to nobody knew.

Since the broadcast, McGonagall has been missing in action. She left abruptly, leaving Professor Finnegan, the DADA professor, as the acting headmaster in her absence. He is nice enough, but he doesn't understand me like McGonagall does.

James has been avoiding me since he found out about Landen. He even stopped coming to the tutoring sessions! Not that I mind, when I DO see him he shoots me dirty looks and hits me with his shoulder like a twelve year old girl. His girlfriend has been tormenting me too, but not for her usual reasons. This time she's harassing me because she thinks Landen and I are dating. Well, we ARE dating but she's upset for Ashlynn. Apparently, after Landen winked at Ashlynn, she got it in her head that he wanted her to stalk him. Because that's what everyone wants, right?

I am sitting by Freddie, stacking some toast on my plate and talking about DADA class when the owls come swooping through the great hall. A small purple envelope falls in front of me and I recognize it immediately. I drop my plate and grab the envelope. I slide my finger under the sealed flap and pull the contents of the envelope, revealing McGonagall's personal stationary. I unfold the parchment and read the letter.

_Ariana,_

_I will need you and James in my office tonight at 11:00 pm._

_-McGonagall_

_P.s. No need to blow up my castle to get into my office. Just remember that I am particularly fond of sugar quills…_

I fold up the parchment and turn to Freddie with a frown. "Looks like I'm going to have to cancel our study plans for tonight, sorry."

Freddie frowns at the table. "Why?"

"McGonagall has called for me. Hey… Would you like to come with?"

His frown changes to a grin immediately. "Of course! I never miss out on a chance to see Old McGonagall!"

I nod at him with a grin. "Lovely! Meet me in the common room at 10:30 then!"

I get up from the table and walk over to James. Monroe looks up at me with a grimace. "What traitor?"

I roll my eyes and scoff. "Traitor? That's a new one! I thought I was a slut?"

"James told me about Landen. Now I KNOW why all of your friends are dead."

I take a deep breath and clench my teeth. "Please, enlighten me."

"It's because you're a nasty traitor who will sell out her friends to live just a few pathetic moments longer." She has a nasty sneer on her face, as if she knows everything she's saying is pushing me closer and closer to snapping. I close my eyes and try to think of something happy, something to diminish the fiery hatred that is burning inside me. She chuckles, breaking me out of my thoughts. "What's wrong traitor? Dark Lord got your tongue?"

At that, my eyes snap open and I brandish my wand, pointing it at her face. "Stupefy!"

Monroe collapses unconsciously onto the table, earning collective gasps and claps from the students surrounding us, along with a loud cheer from Freddie. I look at James through narrowed eyes and toss him the purple envelope. "Come alone." I turn away from him and march out of the great hall.

(Break)

Freddie and I make our way to McGonagall's office with a disgruntled James following behind us. We get to the gargoyle and it says "Password? Or are you going to blow up a wall again?"

I roll my eyes and flip it off. "Sugar quills."

The gargoyle nods and the stairs slowly rise up. Freddie raises an eyebrow at me and smirks. "You blew up a wall?"

I laugh and lead us up the stairs. "Yes. Well, Landen did. But only to get us into McGonagall's office so we could tell her about the broadcast."

He nods, looking impressed and amused. "And THAT is why you two are my best mates!"

James scoffs and pushes past us. "You two are bloody idiots."

Freddie and I laugh and high five each other as James opens the door to McGonagall's office. We walk in and see McGonagall talking to Professor Finnegan. Once she sees us, she dismisses Finnegan with a wave and motions for us to come in. "Well hello Mister Weasley. I didn't know I extended my letter to you as well."

I shake my head and answer before Freddie can. "Sorry Professor. Freddie and I had plans before this and I really didn't want to bail on him."

She nods with pursed lips. "Very well. I'm only here for tonight, so I can talk to you two about that radio broadcast from a few months ago. I found out who he was referring to… And I have a request of you…"

**Landen's POV**

"You're going where?"

Ariana sighs and grabs the tacky purple bag Hermione gave her for her seventeenth birthday. Hermione had said the bag had helped her during her a lot and was sure Ariana could find a use for it.

She grabs a handful of clothes and stuffs them in the bag. "America. McGonagall has us leaving tonight."

"Us? Whose 'us'?" I grab the bag and hold it above my head, knowing she won't be able to reach it.

She sighs and sets two pairs of shoes and a book down on her bed. "James, Freddie and I. Please don't be upset, it's just something I have to do."

I reciprocate her sigh and set the bag back down on her bed. "How long will you be gone?"

"I'm not sure…" She says with a shrug as she continues packing, sadness apparent on her face.

"Please, explain to me again why you have to go to America of all places." I sit on her bed and pat a spot next to me.

She sits down on her bed and leans back against me, grabbing my hand. She begins tracing shapes along the back of my hand as she explains McGonagall's reasoning to me again. I press my nose to her hair as she speaks, realizing this will be the last time I get to hear her voice for a long time. I can tell something else is up too, just by the way she is acting. It's one of the benefits of getting to be her best mate before her boyfriend. I take a deep breath and close my eyes, taking in every syllable and tone of her voice as she speaks.

"Well, according to McGonagall, Caledon had American ancestors who were either killed or tortured by American muggles for being magical. They used to burn witches at the stake… Or they would tie rocks to them and drown them… or they would do multiple other horrendous things to them, just for having powers and being different… But American muggles are different now! They don't even really believe in us, let alone try to kill us!" She clears her throat and readjusts, mattress springs squeaking as she does. "Anyways, apparently Caledon is holding a grudge against American muggles for something that happened so long ago. His radio broadcast was aimed at them, which is bloody stupid since nobody even heard it! Our first stop in America is my home state of Colorado. McGonagall wants us to warn the President and she says he's supposed to be in Colorado tomorrow."

"I'm coming with."

She laughs and shakes her head lightly. "No you aren't and I'll tell you why. Because one: I'll need someone here that I can trust who will give me updates about what's happening and two: because I need someone here to look after Al."

I chuckle and realize that she's right. "That sounds like a lot of work on my part. You don't plan on just partying in America do you?"

"Of course I do! That's REALLY why you're not invited!" She smacks me on the leg playfully and slides off the bed to continue packing.

I shake my head and laugh. "By the way, how exactly to you propose I keep you informed about the happenings of the school?"

Before she can answer, there is a knock on the door followed by, "Ariana are you almost ready?"

She nods, as if the person behind the door can see her, then says "Yes Freddie. Do you want to come in and say goodbye to Landen?"

The door to her room swings open, revealing a grinning Freddie who is wiggling his eyebrows at Ariana. "Is that why your packing is taking so long? Because you two were 'saying' goodbye?"

Ariana tosses a shoe at Freddie with a laugh. "Shut up Fred Weasley! We were just talking about how Landen here can inform us about what's happening in the school while we're gone."

Freddie looks at me. "Well my dad said that when Harry was out looking for horcruxes, a couple of the students had a radio broadcast that told the world what was happening in Hogwarts. You could do that… You might even be able to turn the Room of Requirements into a radio station."

I look at him with a grin. "Freddie Weasley, you're a bloody genius!"

Ariana grabs the bag Freddie has with him and stuffs it into her bag, then slings the bag over her shoulder with a sigh. "Fred, can you wait outside for me? I have to talk to Landen right quick…"

He nods seriously and leaves the room. I look at Ariana, who has a strange expression on her face, and finally understand the strange behavior from before. "Ariana don't. Just… d-"

She holds up her hand and frowns. "Please Landen… I don't have a choice… It's not for forever, just while I'm gone… In case anything happens…"

"So you're breaking up with me in case anything happens? Why?"

"Because it's easier to lose a friend than anyone who's more than that…" I suddenly understand that she's not only talking about protecting herself. She, in a last ditch effort to protect me from more heartbreak than necessary, is telling me that if she dies on this trip then it will be easier for me to deal with if she is a friend rather than a girlfriend.

I nod and sigh. "Can I at least walk you to wherever you need to go? As a friend, of course."

She nods and we leave the room, only to meet up with Freddie in the common room. Ariana looks around and groans. "Where the hell is James?"

Freddie points to James' room and rolls his eyes. "He's saying goodbye to her royal bitchiness."

Ariana walks over to his room and pounds on the door. "JAMES SIRIUS POTTER! STOP SNOGGING THAT TROLL AND GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE! WE NEED TO LEAVE **NOW!**" The door swings open wildly and Ariana grabs a handful of James' robe, yanking him out into the common room.

Monroe steps out with puffy lips and says "What's with all the bitchiness, traitor?"

Ariana glares at James. "We don't have time for goodbyes." She then look over at Monroe and sneers. "Make sure to tell Rylan I say hi…"

With that, she shoves James toward the portrait and quickly flips Monroe off before gesturing for me and Freddie to follow her.

James sees that I'm walking with them and grimaces. "If we don't have time for goodbyes, then why is _he_ coming with us?"

Freddie pushes James forward and small growl escapes his throat. "Shut it and keep walking."

I grab the bag from Ariana and shrug. "I'm just carrying the bag since it's a bit heavy." We walk the rest of the way in silence. Ariana steps in front of the statue and says the password. Once the statue has moved, she leads us into the bathroom and through the broken stall. We enter the dark tunnel and Ariana waves her wand. "Lumos maxima." A ball of light erupts from her wand and floats to the front of the group. Freddie leads, followed by James, then Ariana, and finally me.

As we get to the end of the tunnel, I hear Ariana murmur "Haven't been _here_ in a while…" I grab her hand and give it a squeeze. Before she exits the tunnel I squeeze her hand again and pull her to a stop, evoking a sigh from her. "I have to go Landen."

I nod. "I know, but this will only take a second. I just want to say a proper goodbye."

"Landen, I REALLY have to-"

I place my hand over her mouth with a laugh. "Do you EVER stop talking?"

She shakes her head and earns a smirk from me. I remove my hand from her mouth and lean toward her. She brings her hand up and places it over my mouth while shaking her head with a smirk. "Save it for when I get back."

I nod and hand her the bag. "Don't be gone too long then."

We emerge from the tunnel and are greeted by a familiar view. We see McGonagall standing among the headstones and dug up graves, talking to Freddie and James, who are staring at us as we walk out of the tunnel. Ariana gives me a peck on the cheek and walks over to them, leaving me standing in the opening of the tunnel to watch them leave.

McGonagall says something to them, then James and Freddie grab Ariana's arm and they apparate away.

**Alright... I know I told you I wouldn't be updating for a week, but I didn't have work today so I figured I could give you guys a chapter. But after this I REALLY won't be updating until after next week.**

**Anyways! I hope you lovely readers enjoyed the chapter! Things are about to get pretty interesting...**

**Thank yall for your support! :)**

**-Tx**


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 10**

**James' POV**

We land with a "thud" in the middle of a clearing. There are flowers of all colors in here; red to pink, blue to purple, and orange to yellow. I can hear birds chirping overhead and the sound of children laughing and playing nearby. Ariana kneels down and picks up a handful of flowers. "This is where it all started…" She inhales deeply, a small smile playing at her mouth. She drops the flowers in her hand and stands up abruptly. She has a distracted look on her face as she sprints out of the clearing. I look over to Freddie, whose confused expression matches what I'm feeling.

We push through the low hanging branches and hurdle over the exposed tree roots as we try to follow her retreating silhouette. We emerge from the forest and our feet smack loudly against the cement sidewalk as we continue to chase Ariana. Her blonde hair flows wildly behind her as she rounds onto a neighborhood street.

Freddie and I turn onto the same street Ariana did, both of us panting as we do. We've almost caught up to her when she stops briskly. Freddie and I skid to a halt as we turn to look at what has captured all of Ariana's attention.

Sitting in front of us are the grey, charred remains of what was once a house. There are broken beams lying on top of other pieces of burnt wood. Placed on the ground in front of the house are small stuffed animals and signs that say:

"_Always in our thoughts"_

"_Praying for your safe return, Ariana"_

"_The search will never end"_

Ariana steps forward and touches a piece of the burnt framework. I roll my eyes and reach forward to shake her out of whatever funk she's in, but Freddie stretches his hand out and stops me.

Suddenly Ariana breaks the silence. "It's been two years and it looks the exact same…" She steps into the broken home and runs her hand along the remains of some stairs. She turns to the side and crouches down. She crouches down and runs her hand along a light shape on the floor slowly.

I roll my eyes again and groan. "Ariana, what the hell are you doing?"

"I found him here. He was so… burned. We almost didn't make it out…" She is still touching the spot as she talks.

"Merlin Freddie! Why does she always have to be so cryptic? Why are we even at this crap hole?"

He shrugs his shoulders and whispers "I'm not sure. I actually don't know that much about her past…"

She doesn't even move, she just continues to touch the light spot on the floor. Obviously somebody important was there, but she's probably being dramatic. "Who are you talking about Ariana?"

She looks up at me with tears streaming down her face, her eyes wide and child-like. "Before I lived with your family, this 'crap hole' was my home for fifteen years… That is, until my father died."

I look at Freddie then back to Ariana. "What?"

She pushes up off the floor and looks at us plainly, wiping away her tears. "Never mind… Let's go."

As we walk out of the burned home, a small elderly woman walks out and grabs her mail. She turns and looks at us absentmindedly and then drops her mail and looks at us more intently. "Ariana? Ariana Brighton?"

Ariana turns her head in the direction of the woman and nods. "Yes... wait… Mrs. Johnson?"

The woman squeals and runs to Ariana, wrapping her in a hug. "Oh my dear girl! We thought you were dead!" She releases Ariana and runs back to her house. "Frank! Frank, come out here!" The door shuts and we are left standing on the sidewalk in silent confusion.

I look at Ariana and say "Mrs. Johnson?"

She nods. "She used to babysit me when my dad had to work late."

We can faintly hear sirens off in the distance, which seems to worry Ariana. She looks around and narrows her eyes. "Something isn't right…"

We stand in front of her house for a what feels like ten minutes, facing the direction of the approaching sirens. Suddenly three police cars come swerving around the corner and skid to a stop in front of us. A man gets out of the first car and looks at us. "Are you Ariana Brighton?"

Just then Mrs. Johnson comes out of her house and sees the police. "Ariana is right here!" She runs over and wraps an arm around Ariana with a big smile. The first officer nods to the other two cars and the other two officers get out of their cars. One of them, a woman with short brown hair, grabs Freddie and puts him into her car. Then a squatty male officer grabs me and tries to put me in his car. I start to struggle but Ariana gives me a harsh look that warns me not to. I get into the back seat of the car and watch Ariana and Mrs. Johnson talk to the officer outside.

There is silence in our car until the first officer puts Ariana into his car. It isn't until then that the officer who's driving the car I'm in says anything. "Did you kidnap Ariana Brighton?"

I laugh and shake my head. "Are you bloody joking?"

The officer looks at me in his rearview mirror as he pulls away. "You didn't answer my question."

"No, I didn't kidnap Ariana you oaf."

He raises an eyebrow. "What was that?"

I smirk and shrug. "Nothing. Where are you taking me?"

"Back to the station." He turns his car into the parking lot of a building that says **Denver ****Police Station**. The officer gets out of the car and pulls me out of the back seat, keeping a hand on my shoulder the entire time. Ariana is holding her purple bag tightly as she gets out of the car. She looks at me and nods then does the same thing to Freddie. We nod our understanding and wait for further instruction.

"NOW!"

We all pull out our wands and say "Stupefy!" The officers in front of us drop to the ground, unconscious.

We hear the doors open and someone say "Stop! Ariana Brighton! You're under arrest for the murder of Jonathan Brighton!"

Freddie and I run over to Ariana and look at her desperately. "What now?"

She crouches down behind a car and frowns. "Now… Now we need to run!" She looks back at the officer and yells "I didn't murder my father!"

We take off in a mad dash back toward the forest where we first landed, officers pursuing us as we do.

**Ari's POV**

I sit in silence in the squad car with Officer Parker for only a moment. As soon as the squad car pulls away from the remains of my house, he looks in the rear view mirror and asks "Were you kidnapped?"

I shake my head and he nods. "Do you know how the fire at your house was started?"

I shake my head again, wondering where he's going with this. He nods again. "Did you know arson is a crime?"

I nod this time, the gears in my head slowly moving as I realize where he's going with this. He nods again. Then his radio crackles to life. "Do you have Ariana Brighton?"

Officer Parker picks up the radio and responds. "Yes, I have the suspect with me now." He puts his radio back down and looks at me in the rearview mirror again. "Did you know murder is a crime?"

"Officer, are you insinuating that I killed my father?" I narrow my eyes at the man driving the squad car.

He stares at me intently in the rearview mirror. "Was that a confession?"

"No it was not, officer. I'm not a murderer."

The officer smirks as we pull into the parking lot of the station. "We'll see…"

I'm not sticking around for this, and I don't plan on dragging Freddie or James into this either. I clutch to the bag Hermione gave me as Officer Parker pulls me out of the car. I look over to James and nod subtly and then do the same to Freddie. They both nod their understanding. I look around and realize it's now or never… "NOW!"

The three of us whip out our wands and say "Stupefy!"

The officers in front of us drop to the ground with a thud as another officer runs out of the station yelling "Stop! Ariana Brighton! You're under arrest for the murder of Jonathan Brighton!"

Freddie and James run over to me, desperation apparent on their face. "What now?"

I crouch down behind a squad car and frown. "Now… Now we need to run!" I look at the officer running toward us and yell "I didn't murder my father!"

We sprint away from the station, heading in the direction of my clearing. The officer from the station pursues us on foot. He grabs the radio on his shoulder and calls for backup.

We get just outside the clearing and a spell shoots past us, hitting the officer who was chasing us. I look at Freddie then James, each shaking their head to tell me they didn't shoot the spell.

We get into the clearing and see three Death Eaters standing in front of us. The one in the front speaks first. "You could still go home. None of you need to die today."

I smirk and point my wand at him. "The only ones dying today are you three."

We all stay silent for a moment, all with our wands pointed at the opposite group, until the head Death Eater shoots a spell at Freddie. This one action sends us into a battle with each other. James takes out his Death Eater right away then turns to help me. I nod to them both, then leave to take care of the police. Before I get through the tree line, I wave my wand and say "Avis." A flurry of small birds appears above me and I grin.

I run from the forest and see at least five squad cars sitting outside the forest with officers getting out of them. I point my wand at the officers and say "Oppugno!" The birds all swarm the officers, pecking at their faces and scratching at their exposed skin, and diverting their attention from me.

I run back into the clearing and see the head Death Eater hiding behind a tree. He aims his wand at James and then everything moves in slow motion. I sprint over to James and tackle him to the ground, causing him to hit his head on a rock, while pointing my wand at the Death Eater. The Death Eater's spell leaves his wand just as my spell does. A giant fireball erupts from my wand and engulfs the Death Eater, his spell and the tree he was hiding behind.

The tree explodes violently from the heat, sending flaming bark and sparks flying everywhere, along with lighting the surrounding trees and grass ablaze. A chunk of the shrapnel lands on my exposed forearm and I wince at the pain. I fling the chunk of burning wood off my arm and turn to see James is on the ground, unconscious. I roll my eyes and call Freddie over and tell him to grab my arm. He shoots another spell at the distracted Death Eater and runs over to me. He grabs my arm as I grab James' arm and we apparate away.

We land in the cold snow outside a tall flat. I look at James and grimace. His head is bleeding from where it hit the rock. I look to Freddie and say "Watch him. I'll be right back." I walk up to the door and look on the intercom for the familiar last name. "Franklyn… Franklyn… Franklyn!" I push the button to call up and wait for a response.

The intercom crackles to life with the sound of a male voice. "Who is it?"

"Is this still the Franklyn residence?"

It crackles again. "Who's asking?"

I press the button firmly. "Ariana Brighton."

I wait for another response, tapping my foot on the ground impatiently. Suddenly the door to the flat opens and reveals a shocked, yawning male. "Ariana? Is it really you?"

"Yes it is…" I look around warily then focus on the face in front of me. He towers over me, has light brown hair that is very messily strewn about, bright blue eyes, a slender nose with small freckles that dance across his nose, and full lips. He is wearing blue plaid boxers and a white wife-beater. "Hold on… Eli? Is that you?"

He grins and wraps me in a hug that lifts me off the ground. "Ari it IS you! I missed you so much! Oh! Brittney is going to be so happy to see you!"

I laugh and let out a cough as he squeezes me. "Let me down Elijah!" He sets me on the ground and I frown. "Can we come in?"

He looks at me with a raised eyebrow. "We?"

I pull him around the corner, his bare feet trudging through the snow, and show him Freddie and James. He looks them over and nods. "Of course, but only because it's you."

Freddie and I pick up James and carry him into the flat. I look at Eli again and try to remember when the last time was that I saw him. It's been a really long time… "Are you lot still on the top floor?"

He nods and leads us up the stairs. He flings open the door to the Franklyn loft and exposes his living space. The building, on the outside, looks run down and small but it's a wizard loft so the inside is gigantic and lush. The Franklyn's loft has marble floors, a large kitchen, at least ten bedrooms. Each bedroom has its own bathroom, walk in closet and fireplace. The living room has a large crystal chandelier that hangs from the ceiling and a large television hanging on the wall. When Freddie sees the inside, his mouth drops open in shock. I look around and smile. This was another one of my childhood homes.

Eli guides us to a spare bedroom and tells us to lay James down in there. We do as he says and then he leads us out to the kitchen. "Sorry it's so empty. Mom's out on business and Brittney won't be back from Salem until tomorrow." He grabs a box of cereal and pours himself a bowl.

Freddie and I take a seat at the table and he immediately asks the question I know he's been itching to ask. "What the hell happened back there?"

I shrug my shoulders and look at the glass table. "It's a spell I've been working on. It's obviously not been perfected yet."

"I don't care! It was bloody awesome!"

I can feel a blush creeping up my face so I change the subject. "Oh! I'm being unbelievably rude! Freddie this is Eli." I've known Eli since birth, although he is a year older than me so technically he's known ME since birth.

Freddie an Eli shake hands and smile politely. Eli sits down across from me and takes another bite of his cereal. "Where have you been? We thought you were dead."

I roll my eyes and groan. "Why does everyone keep saying that? I was living in England with James' family after my father was murdered. Oh, James is the boy in the spare room by the way."

I get up from the table and walk to the living room. I grab the remote and turn on the TV, changing the channel to the news.

"…_In other news, a large wildfire has broken out in Denver, Colorado. The cause of the fire is unknown, but Arson experts will be investigating the cause once the fire has been contained. The fire has spread quickly despite local firefighters attempts to contain the fire. Surrounding cities are being asked to evacuate for precautionary purposes…"_

"Shit!" I look at Freddie and frown. "I should NOT have done that spell…"

Eli spits out the cereal in his mouth, sputtering and coughing as he does. "Wait… YOU did that?"

I nod and flop down on the couch, slapping my palm to my forehead as I do. "SHIT! I can't believe we did that!"

Freddie stands up and looks around awkwardly before looking at Eli and asking "Where is the bathroom?"

I stand up before Eli can answer and grab Freddie's arm. "I can show you. I have to wrap my burn and check on James anyways…" I drag him to one of the multiple bathrooms and hand him a first aid kit. "Here… If you need to bandage anything up. Towels are under the sink if you want to shower. I'm going to go deal with the cut on James' head."

I grab an ACE bandage and leave the bathroom. I walk to my old room and wrap up the cut on James head. I fluff up his pillow and pull the sheets up over him. I grab the remaining ACE bandage and walk back out into the kitchen. I walk over to Eli and hand him the bandage while extending my arm out. "Wrap it up please?"

He smirks and wraps the bandage around my burn. "Is this your version of flirting? If it is then England has ruined you."

I roll my eyes and punch him in the arm. "Ew! Shut up you prat! I have someone already! Well, kind of…"

He laughs and pats the bandage down. "Really now? Is he blind? Or stupid? Or both?"

I flip him off with a smirk. "You're such an ass."

He smiles widely. "Only to you. Are you hungry?" I nod rapidly, earning another laugh from him. He tosses me a cereal box and a bowl. "Help yourself."

I pour myself a bowl of cereal and sit at the glass table. I take a bite and look around at the loft again. It has to have been at least four years since I've been here. Eli speaks, as if reading my mind. "It's been what, four years, since you were here last? Which would mean the last time I saw you was five years ago… Holy shit we were so young!"

I let out a laugh and nod. "Oh I know! When did you move back in with mum?"

"Last year. She's been having a bit of a hard time with Brittney lately so I moved in to help her out."

I sigh and look at my cereal. "How's Brittney been since I left?"

He shakes his head and frowns. "Not well… She got suspended for fighting the first week of fifth year…"

"I felt truly horrendous for leaving her like that… I wanted to send her a letter, but she probably would have freaked out when some owl dropped a letter off here. Plus, we were living in a secret house after an attack at the manor." Suddenly I'm not hungry. I grimace at my cereal bowl and push it toward Eli. "Go ahead and finish it… I'm not hungry anymore."

He grins and shakes his head while taking a bite of the cereal. "It's as if you never left!"

I smirk. "You left before I did, remember?"

He nods while chewing his bite. "Right, right… So tell me what you've been up to. What brings you to New York?"

"Well, after setting that Colorado forest on fire, we needed a place to hide and this was the first place that came to mind since I used to hide here from my dad all the time."

Eli laughs and finishes the last of the cereal. "Well I'm glad you did. Why did you set that forest on fire, by the way?"

I start off by explaining that there is a Dark Lord who is threatening to kill off American muggles and end with telling him about the radio broadcast and the fight in the forest.

He smirks. "So why did you have to go to Colorado?"

"The headmaster of Hogwarts said we need to warn the President about Caledon. He was supposed to be flying into Colorado today, but I doubt that's going to happen now that I set the entire bloody state on fire."

Eli raises an eyebrow at me. "You know the President is coming here in two weeks, right?"

I give Eli a hug and grin. "I do now! You're bloody brilliant!"

Suddenly the door flings open and I hear "Eli where the piss is she?"

"Mum?" I look to Eli for an explanation and he grins.

"I MAY have texted her when you showed Freddie to a bathroom." He looks toward the door and yells "She's over here mom!"

Eli's mom, who I call mom since she was my mother's best mate back when she was still alive, comes around the corner and squeals. "HOLY SHIT IT _IS _YOU!" I've literally known her since birth and she's been like a second mom to me.

She wraps me in a hug and squeezes tightly. I smile and gasp for breath. "Hey mum!"

She drops me and rakes her hand across her face. Eli rolls his eyes and throws a balled up napkin at her. "No crying! Go clean yourself up."

Mom laughs and rolls her eyes. "I'm sorry! I just haven't seen my baby in two and a half years!" She heads to her bedroom and shuts the door.

I look at Eli and frown. "Should I tell her that I didn't come alone?"

He shakes his head. "Not right now. Speaking of these other two, who are they? I know their names but that's about it."

"Well Freddie is one of my best mates and James is an ex-boyfriend turned twat that the headmaster sent along with me."

He nods and opens his mouth to say something but stops and just points to the TV. I turn around and gasp as I look at the screen. Hand drawn pictures of me, James and Freddie are on the screen.

"…_These three fugitives are said to be armed and highly dangerous. If you see them, call the police and do not engage. Again the girl is around 5'1, has blonde hair, green eyes and freckles. Both males stand at around 6'0. One of the males has black hair and hazel eyes while the other one has reddish-brown hair and brown eyes. If you see them, call your local police…"_

I throw my hands up and groan. "Merlin! What the hell?"

Eli smirks and pretends to be offended. "Oh I know! You've got to be at least 5'2!"

I flip him off as mum comes out of her room and walks over to me with a smile. "How long are you staying?"

"I'm not sure." I say with a shrug. "Probably at least two weeks. My friends and I have a rather important task and I don't know how long that will take for sure. Mum, I'm really sorry that I left…"

She shakes her head with a smile. "Dear, it's alright. As long as you're back now." She looks to Eli. "When does Brittney get back?"

"Tomorrow, I think."

Freddie walks out from the bathroom carrying a towel. I pull him over to in front of mum and introduce them. After she's met Freddie, I drag her into my old room and show James to her, explaining what happened to him as I do. "Can you fix his head wound?"

She nods and waves me out of the room then sets to work on him.

I walk out of the room and find Eli and Freddie talking and watching TV. I flop down on the couch next to them and look at my watch. _9:18 am…_

I lie my head down on the armrest of the couch and close my eyes while I wait for mom to finish fixing James.

(Break)

I flail my arms in front of me as someone shakes my shoulders. "What the hell?"

I look around and try to remember where I am. I see the sun still shining through the loft and take a deep breath. Eli is sitting in front of me with a startled expression. "Geez! Someone is a cranky pants!"

I rub my eyes and yawn. "Sorry…"

He shakes his head with a smirk. "I just wanted to let you know that mom finished with James and he's awake. Freddie is in the room with him now but you can go see him once Freddie's done."

I shake my head and lie back down on the couch. "I'm good for now. All that matters is that he's alright. I can't have an injured person tagging along during this."

Eli shakes his head and frowns. "Did something happen with him? Do I need to kick his ass for you?"

I let out a laugh and shake my head. "Very astute of you but no, you don't need to 'kick his ass'. As I told you earlier today, he's just an ex-boyfriend. We don't really get along though because of who he's dating now."

He nods and grabs my hand with a smirk. "Are you sure? Because I haven't been able to kick ANYONE'S ass lately and I'm starting to miss it."

I roll my eyes and laugh again. "You're such a good big brother."

He laughs loudly and nods. "I am, aren't I? Speaking of good big brothers, I never did teach you how to play Quodpot, did I?"

I shake my head and grin. "No, but that's alright. Do you remember when I accidentally blew up a classroom at Salem?"

He lets out another loud laugh and nods. "Yes! You had the quod and thought it was about to blow up so you threw it into a classroom. That teacher was so pissed!"

"And you covered for me and said that YOU threw it instead of me… Like I said, you're a good brother."

I hear the bedroom door open and shut behind me, then see Eli get a mischievous glint in his eye. He pulls my wrist forward and picks me up over his shoulder. He stands up and starts walking toward the room James is in. I hit in on the back and flail my legs around trying to get free. "Elijah Ryan Franklyn! Put me down this instant!"

He pushes through the door and I can hear the smirk on his face as he says "If you insist…" He sets me on the edge of the bed and runs out of the room, shutting the door and holding it shut. "I'm not opening the door until you two talk! Just trying to be a good big brother!"

I groan and look at James, whose eyes are opened wide and his mouth is pulled into a smirk. "Friend of yours?"

I roll my eyes and grimace. "Unfortunately, yes… How's your head?"

He rubs the spot and frowns. "It hurts a bit but I'll be fine."

I look at him with a smirk. "Good, I hope it hurts. You're bloody useless in a fight, you know…"

"That was rude!" He places his hand on his chest and his mouth drops open in fake shock.

I roll my eyes and laugh. "Probably, but it's true! That's the _second _time you've been knocked out during a fight!"

"Yes, but this one was your fault. By the way, thanks for that…"

I look at him skeptically. "What?"

He shrugs his shoulders and grins. "Well, ever since you decided to hit my head into that rock, my memory has been coming back."

My eyes widen and I raise an eyebrow. "How much do you remember?"

"Not much yet. It's been coming back slowly but surely. By the way you, Freddie and Al can all get bent for letting me go out with Monroe for this long!" He flips me off with a smirk.

I roll my eyes again and frown. "We have a couple of problems… One: I accidentally set that Colorado forest on fire and started a statewide wildfire that firefighters are struggling to contain. Whoops..."

"Okay… What's the other problem?"

I sigh and purse my lips. "Our faces are plastered all over the news as wanted criminals. They only have sketches of our faces, but they described us as well, which means we are probably going to have to change the way we look… And it can't be like a polyjuice potion change either… It's got to be fairly long term."

He runs his hands through his hair and grimaces. "Alright…" He picks up a picture that is sitting in a silver frame on top of the bedside table and hands it to me. "By the way, when was this?"

I grab the silver frame out of his hands and smile. The picture is of Brittney, me and Eli. Brittney and I were twelve and Eli was thirteen. We are covered in mud and leaves and laughing, throwing more mud and leaves as we do. Suddenly a giant blob of mud hits the camera and the frame fills with brown goo. "This was during summer break after year two. Brittney and I were swinging when Eli decided he wanted the swing. To get us to leave, he began throwing mud at us. That made us extremely mad so we started throwing mud at him. It ended up turning into a gigantic mud and leaf fight. Mom took this picture right as it was ending."

Eli opens the door and smirks. "You guys all better yet?"

I wave to James and pull out my wand. I point it at Eli and grin while walking toward him. "Oh we're lovely now. I can't say the same for you though."

He backs away with a grin and his hands up in defense. "You're so testy… Freddie wanted me to come get you. He said something about 'your boyfriend's radio broadcast' or something like that."

I tuck my wand behind my ear, grab James and pull him out of bed. I push past Eli, towing James behind me, and run toward Freddie's room. I swing his door open and find him sitting on his bed with a radio plugged in and tuning the station. I jump onto the bed next to him. "Is it on yet?"

He shoots me a dirty look and huffs. "Does it SOUND like it's on yet?"

"Sorry…"

The radio crackles to life and Landen's voice fills the room. _"Hello listeners! Chaser one here! This broadcast is to keep everyone on the outside informed about what's happening here at Hogwarts! Headmaster McGonagall is still gone and has Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher Seamus Finnegan taking her place. Taking HIS place is the new French teacher __**Andromeda Clarimonde**__. There isn't much going on here besides that, but I will be sure to keep you lovely listeners as up to date as possible. Tune in next week for more updates. Until then, I have a special message to a special listener out there. I love you, stay safe and come back soon. Chaser one out."_

The radio crackles out and I look at Freddie with wide eyes, his facial expression reflecting mine. "Andromeda Clarimonde? I've heard that name before…"

Freddie shakes his head, smirking weakly "I didn't hear anything over Landen saying he loves me."

I shake my head lightly and frown. "Fred, what's up?"

His expression drops as he looks at the radio. "Andromeda Clarimonde was who Caledon had torture me and Logan when we were kidnapped last year…"

I clasp my hands over my mouth and gasp. "Now she's teaching DADA at Hogwarts…"

James sighs. "Shit…"

**Alright so I've come to the conclusion that I'm a terrible student who is never going to study for finals... I'm not even going to lie to myself anymore. Haha**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter an I would love to know your thoughts and opinions about it!**

**Thanks to those who added the story to their subscription list and reviewed! :)**

**-Tx**


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 11**

**Ari's POV**

_I walk into a chamber with lit torches hanging on the walls. In the center of the chamber, in the center of the warm light of the torches, is a tall, black, iron cage._

_I walk toward the cage and pull on the door. It opens with ease and I step into the cage, pulling the door shut behind me. I sit on the ground and wait. I'm not sure what I'm waiting for, but I wait._

_After sitting and waiting for a bit they begin to come, one by one. First it's my mother, she takes her place in front of me as he death is reenacted. It seems to be on an endless loop as she dies over and over again. Then comes my father. He takes his place next to my mother and dies too, his death repeating over and over. Then comes Carter, then Astoria, then Rachelle, and finally Bella. They all take their place in a circle around me and repeatedly die._

_The door to the cage swings open, revealing an escape from the torture, but I'm so consumed with anguish that I stay where I'm seated._

_Then, in one loud explosion, everyone dies at once. Their bodies go flying in all directions, slamming into walls with loud "THUD"'s._

I fling the blankets off of me and jump up, brandishing my wand as I do. I look around my room frantically and remember where I am. I take a staggered deep breath and glance at my watch. _7:47 am…_

I hear another loud explosion overhead and duck down, covering my head with my arms. I slowly raise back up and sneak out of my room. I grab a big blanket off the couch and go out onto the balcony, taking a seat on one of the fluffy chairs sitting out. I wrap myself in the blanket and lean back against the chair, closing my eyes and letting the cool, crisp winter air chill my face.

Why had I stayed in the cage? The door was open, yet I stayed… Why? It was as if I had chosen to stay there and watch them die, which is pretty twisted. I grunt and cover my face with my hands. "What the hell?"

"I don't know… WHAT the hell?"

I whip my head around with a gasp. "Merlin, James! You scared the hell out of me! What are you doing up?"

He shrugs and sits in the chair next to me. "Sorry, I couldn't sleep."

I nod and look out at the town. A firework shoots off into the sky, exploding into a bright, sparkling, flurry of purple. I follow the fireworks path and see a house with lights flashing and hear faint music thumping. Another firework shots off and I wave my wand, muting it before it explodes. I do this a few more times before James breaks the silence. "Ari, I'm really sorry for how I've treated you these past few months…"

I nod my forgiveness as I tinker with my charm bracelet. I haven't messed with it in a while, and I realized I only do it when I'm nervous about something. James notices me playing with my bracelet and frowns. "What are you thinking about?"

I stare at the flashing house and sigh. "Landen, actually."

James grimaces. "Why?"

"Because he's stuck at Hogwarts with Andromeda…"

"So? So is Al. Why aren't you worrying about him?" He still has a frown on his face as he readjusts in his chair.

I roll my eyes and scoff. "Yes, he is. But I'm not worried about Al because Landen will make sure to look out for him. I'm worried about the fact that Landen is in that school with her now, when just last year he was undercover in their group. It's pretty probable that Andromeda will single him out and make his life hell…"

I can see James loosen up a bit, but before he can say anything the balcony door opens and Eli steps out onto the patio. "What are you two doing out here?"

James and I say at the time "Couldn't sleep." I look at him with a smirk while his eyes widen.

Eli laughs at us and shakes his head. He walks over and plops down on my lap, causing a huff of air to escape my lips. I push on his back and grunt as I try to get him off of me. "Get your fat ass off me!"

He grins and lens back, crushing me into the chair. "I just wanted to let you know that mom just left to go pick up Brittney. They should be back in about an hour."

I push my head out from behind him and smile. "I want to surprise her. Have mum send you a text when they are close so that I can hide."

"Okay sounds like a plan."

I widen my smile into a grin and look at James. "I can't wait for you and Freddie to meet her. She's bloody brilliant! Not like this git here."

Eli smirks and squeezes me cheeks "Aw! My wittle sister is so sweet!" He gets up off my lap and sticks his tongue out at me then says "You might want to go get ready, you don't have very long." With that, he walks back inside and shuts the door behind him.

James gives me an odd look. "Now I know where you get your maturity from…"

I fake a laugh and flip him off. He shakes his head and chuckles. "I thought you said you didn't have any siblings though?"

I shake my head. "I don't. Not any blood siblings anyways. Eli is more like an adopted brother. Kind of like Al!"

He nods his head thoughtfully. "Do you have any other 'adopted' siblings?"

"We should go get ready. Eli is right, we don't have much time." I smirk at his disappointed expression as I get up from my chair.

He grabs my arm before I can go inside and asks "Why didn't you come live here after your father's death?"

I shrug my shoulders, pulling my arm free from his grip. "I thought it was obvious. To protect them."

He throws his arms into the air and groans. "Why is everything you do to protect someone?"

"Because we protect the ones we love, James." I pull open the door and walk inside, leaving James outside in the winter air. I get into my room and dig through my bag for some fresh clothes. I grab my new clothes and quickly make my way into my bathroom to take a shower, admiring the large tiled bathroom as I walk in.

After my shower, I rapidly get dressed and braid my hair. I look at my watch and groan. I still have thirty minutes until Brittany gets back. I haven't been this excited to see anyone since last year when Bella was coming back from her family's funeral. I furrow my brow and sigh. If Caledon is upset with American muggles, why had he been killing families in England?

I walk over to Freddie's room and open the door, revealing a shirtless Freddie. "Fred I have a question for you."

"What the bloody hell Ariana? Ever hear of knocking?" He quickly pulls his shirt over his head to cover himself.

I smirk and shake my head. "Freddie, we were on the same quidditch team. I've seen you without a shirt loads of times. Will you help me now or are you going to continue to blush like a little girl?"

He throws a pillow at me and laughs. "You're such a prat! What do you want?"

"I was just wondering if you had any ideas as to why Caledon has been killing families in England if he's holding a grudge against American muggles?"

He shrugs. "He thrives on power and fear. Maybe by killing those families was his way of getting people to know his name. Maybe it was his way of trying to put fear into their hearts, although that failed miserably. All he did was anger them. Or maybe... It wasn't ever him doing the killing, was it? It was always his stupid followers. Maybe he doesn't have as much control over them as he thinks… Now do you mind? I need to finish changing and, although you have seen me without a shirt before, you haven't seen me without pants and I would like to keep it that way."

I roll my eyes and leave his room, but not before flipping him off with a smirk. I head out to the kitchen and grab some frozen waffles from the freezer. I put four wheat waffles in the toaster and, while they are toasting, I grab a container of peanut butter from the pantry. Once they pop I pull them out and spread some peanut butter on them, silently thinking to myself how nice it is to be back in America.

Eli walks out of his room with a grin. "I smell waffle nutters!" He sees my plate of peanut butter covered waffles, or waffle nutters, and grabs one with a smirk.

I roll my eyes and laugh. "You're lucky one of those was already for you!" I walk back to Freddie's room and knock. "Do you have your pants on yet?"

He opens the door and glares at me playfully. "_Yes._"

"Good. I brought you a waffle nutter."

He raises an eyebrow at me and smirks a little. "Excuse me?"

I stuff the waffle in his mouth and walk to James' room. I walk into his room and find him brushing his hair, to no avail. It continues to stick up in all directions, out of control. I smirk and stuff a waffle into his mouth as he opens it to say something to me. "Enjoy your waffle nutter!"

I run out of his room before he can protest or say anything. _That's right! I'm going to force my American foods on you two!_

I look at my watch again and smile. _Five minutes left!_

I rapidly eat my waffle nutter and put my plate in the sink. Suddenly the lock on the door begins to twist and Eli looks at me with wide eyes. "Shit! They're home early! Go hide!" he whispers as he pushes me out of the kitchen. I run into Brittney's room and hide in her dark closet, quietly praying that she decides to unpack first thing. I tap my foot and nervously play with my charm bracelet as I watch the closet door intently.

I can hear Brittney yelling something at Eli and then hear her bedroom door slam shut as she grunts. "Why is he such an asshole?"

I suppress a laugh, wondering what Eli could have possibly done to anger her. Suddenly her closet door swings open, letting blinding light come flooding in through the open doors. Brittney is looking down at some shirts she has in her hands, picking fluff off the shirt on top. I take a deep breath and say "Hey Bri…"

She throws the shirts at me, surprise and fear etched on her face, and exclaims "Oh shit! What the hell?" She has her wand pointed at me and her other hand is placed over her chest. Her eyes are opened wide with shock and her mouth is agape.

I shake the shirts off and step out of the closet with a laugh. She still looks the exact same as she did when I left two years ago. Her dark brown bushy hair is pulled back into a ponytail, a few curly tendrils falling loose against her face, and her glasses resting on top of her head. The dark freckles she has across her nose and prominent cheekbones contrast against her pallid skin and her icy blue eyes are still bright as ever, contrasting against her dark hair.

I wave my hand and say again "Hey Bri…"

She lowers her wand and narrows her eyes at me. "What the fuhhh… Ariana? Holy shit!" She rushes forward and wraps her arms around me. "Where the hell have you been? I thought you were-"

I shake my head and laugh again. "If you say dead I'm going to go mental."

She releases me from her hug and frowns as she punches me in the arm. "Why the hell didn't you write me?"

"To answer your first question, I was in England. I went and lived with some people there after my father was killed. To answer your second question, I didn't write you because I wasn't allowed to. We were staying in a secret location and writing you would have given our position away. And speaking of living with some people, I have some people I want you to meet…" I grab her arm and pull her out of her room before she can protest.

We walk to the room where Freddie has been staying and I knock on the door lightly. The door opens and reveals Freddie. Past him is James sitting on his bed. Freddie smirks and says "Oh so now you knock?"

"I hope you're decent because I have someone for you to meet and we're coming in." I push the door open and pull Brittney through the door. I point to James. "This is James. He's the person whose family I've been living with for the past two and a half years."

Brittney shakes his hand politely then looks at Freddie with a slight grin. I smirk at her and gesture to Freddie. "This prat here is Fred Weasley. He is, unfortunately, bloody brilliant and one of my best mates."

Brittney shakes his hand and says "Pleasure to meet you Fred Weasley."

Freddie winks at her, causing Brittney to blush, and says "Call me Freddie, love."

James looks at me with fake hurt. "Wait, you don't think I'm brilliant?"

Before I can answer, Eli walks in and grins at Brittney. "Well Bri? Still think I'm an asshole?"

Brittney flips him off and grabs my arm, pulling me out of Freddie's room behind her. "So Ariana, it seems we have lots of catching up to do… How about we go get some sushi and talk?"

I grin at her as I remember our favorite sushi place. "Sushi Shushi is still open? Absolutely! Can we bring the guys though? I want to immerse them in everything American."

She nods vigorously with a smirk. "Totally! But you do realize sushi isn't American, right?"

"Shut it and go tell the guys we're leaving."

Brittney rolls her eyes with a laugh and walks back to Freddie's room with a sheepish grin.

**Okay yall! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions about it! :)**

**I will upload the next chapter once I have it typed up, which should be between today and Monday.**

**I also want to say thanks to everyone who added this story to your alerts and to everyone who reviewed! I really appreciate it! Yalls reviews encourage me to write more and update faster! :)**

**Thank you!**

**-Tx**


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 12**

**Landen's POV**

I'm sitting in the library with Al discussing Caledon when my twat of a stepbrother walks over to us. He has a large sneer on his face as he slaps his hands on the table loudly. "Well, well, well. What do we have here?"

I roll my eyes and frown. "Piss off Caledon."

"Tsk tsk. You really shouldn't be so testy. Is this what happens when that filth you call a girlfriend leaves for a bit?" His sneer widens on his face as he watches the anger play out across my face.

Al jumps up from his chair with a grunt and pushes Castor back. "Piss off you twat!"

Suddenly Andromeda is standing next to us, her face twisted into fake concern, as she shoots me an angry glare. "Mister Raghnall! Mister Potter! Zere iz no fighting here at Hogwarts! Come wis me now…" She grabs Al and me tightly around the arm and pulls us out of the library. I look back at Castor angrily and see he has a look of victory etched on his face.

Andromeda drags us to her office and shoves us each into a chair. I glower at her from my seat and say through gritted teeth "What is our punishment Andromeda?"

She wags her finger at me and smirks. "Now, now. I am a professor here at Hogwarts. Show some rezpect."

I grit my teeth harder and take a deep breath. "Sorry, what's our punishment _professor_?"

"You two will fight wis each ozher." The corners of her mouth twitch slightly as she looks at each of our faces.

I look at Al and shake my head. "That is NOT going to happen."

She sneers at me and wags her finger again. "Now, now Landen. You seem to have some respect issues… I will fix zat soon enough."

Al chimes in. "Why exactly do you think we should fight each other? That's against the rules here at Hogwarts!"

"You obviously think fighting iz acceptable. If it's so acceptable then you two will be fine wis fighting each ozher." She is looking at me again, the crazy fire in her eyes that I recognize from last year.

I shake my head and put down my wand. "No. I refuse."

She shakes her head and draws out her wand. "Wrong answer Landen." I look over at Al with wide eyes and he reciprocates my expression. Andromeda raises her wand and says "Imper-"

Before she can say the spell someone opens the door. Al and I take this moment of hesitation to pick up my wand and run away from Andromeda. We push past Scorpious Malfoy as we run through the corridors. "Thanks Scorp!" I yell back as we run away. I drag Al into the Gryffindor common room and into the Heads dorm. It's empty since both James and Ariana are in America for holiday. "We can hide here for a bit."

Al nods and sits on the couch. "That was almost really bad…"

I nod in agreement as I walk into Ariana's room. I grab a new shirt and change into it. I look at Ariana's alarm clock and sigh loudly. "I have to do the radio broadcast in fifteen minutes. Do you want to come with?"

I walk back out into the common room and Al nods distractedly. "Has it really already been a week? It doesn't feel like it's been that long…"

"What do you mean it's _already_ been a week? I think you mean it's _only_ been a week." I smirk at him as he flips me off.

"You know what I meant! Do you really want me to come with you tonight?" He asks me sincerely.

I nod with a smile. "Of course! I could use a co-broadcaster! Plus, I'm sure James, Freddie and Ariana would love to hear your voice and know you're okay."

He smiles largely and jumps up off the couch. "Well let's go then!"

We leave the common room and Gryffindor tower, quietly making our way through the empty castle. We continually look over our shoulders for anyone who could be following us as we make our way to the room of requirements.

Once we get into the room of requirements, or currently a radio broadcast station, we make sure that nobody else can get in with us and start our broadcast. "Hello again outside world! Chaser one here! I have a special guest here with me for tonight's broadcast. Say hello special guest!"

Al rolls his eyes and clears his throat. "Um… Hey. Seeker one here. Uh, what's up?"

I cover the mic and smirk at him. "Really? _What's up?_" Al shrugs with a laugh and I uncover the mic to continue my broadcast. "Alright! That awkward bloke was seeker one… Not much has changed here at Hogwarts since last week. Professor Longbottom and Professor Patil have left, but I'm not sure when they plan on coming back so I can't give you much information on that… Is there anything else you can think to say seeker one?"

Al shrugs again and leans toward the mic. "Uh… no?"

I stifle a laugh and nod. "Okay then. As always, I hope you brilliant listeners stay safe out there! Chaser one and seeker one out."

I turn off the equipment and look at Al with a grin. "What the hell was that?"

He laughs and shakes his head. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"You were so awkward!"

He shakes his head. "I was a bit nervous, alright! I don't know how you do it!"

I sigh heavily. "You want to know my secret? I pretend I'm talking to Ariana. We always have odd conversations, which makes this rather easy. You just have to pretend that you're talking to someone rather than doing a radio broadcast."

He nods thoughtfully then grins. "She'll be back, I'm sure of it."

"I know. I wouldn't have let her go if I didn't think she would be." We walk out of the room and hide behind a suit of armor as Monroe passes by us.

Once she's out of sight, Al scoffs. "LET her go… right."

I look at him with a raised eyebrow. "What?"

He shakes his head and smirks. "Oh nothing. I just think it's funny that you think you 'let her go'… Ariana is as stubborn as she is sarcastic. She may have let you THINK you were letting her go, but she was going to go no matter what."

I roll my eyes and sigh but don't say anything. Al takes my silence as a victory and grins. "You know I'm right…"

Al and I walk back into the Gryffindor common room and sneak into the Heads dorm. "Yes, I know you're right… I hate when you're right... Do you want James' room or Ariana's room?"

He looks at me questioningly. "For what?"

"To plot our takeover of the world… To sleep in you prat!"

He flips me off with a laugh. "Oh! I'll take James' room. It would be a bit odd for me to sleep in your… _friend's_… room."

I roll my eyes and give him a parting wave. I walk into Ariana's room and change into my pajamas. I grab her Gryffindor quidditch blanket and crawl onto her bed. I drape the blanket over myself and close my eyes.

My eyes snap open and I jerk upright as I hear shuffling sounds coming from the common room. I silently grab my wand and hop off the bed, landing lightly on my toes. I quietly creep over to the door and inch it open so that I can find the source of the shuffling noise. I see something dart in front of the crack in the door causing me to jump back, startled. I shake my head at the fact that the movement startled me and roll my eyes. I fling open the door and turn on the lights, my wand extended out in front of me defensively. I look around the room and drop my wand in shock when I find the source of the shuffling. "James?"

**Ari's POV**

I walk out into the living room with Brittney, Eli, James and Freddie in tow. We had just listened to Landen's broadcast and explaining the Hogwarts situation to Eli and Brittney. Brittney has been home for six days and we STILL haven't been able to explain EVERYTHING that has happened at Hogwarts to her. I plop down on the couch and sigh as I look at Freddie. "So that's two more professors who fought in the war who are gone… What the bloody hell is going on at Hogwarts?"

Freddie shrugs his shoulders and sighs. "I honestly don't know Ari… But I think I'm going to go to bed. Maybe sleeping on things will help."

We all nod our agreement and head off to our rooms. I look at the time then jump into my bed and close my eyes, thinking about how grateful I was to hear Landen and Al's voices tonight. I really was worried for them with Andromeda being there. I drift off to sleep fairly quickly.

"Ariana… Hey Ariana, wake up…"

I open my eyes slowly and see James standing next to my bed with a worried expression on his face. His expression wakes me up immediately. "James? What's wrong?"

He looks at the ground and sighs heavily. "I, um… I had a dream, of sorts."

I look at him warily and encourage him to continue. "Okay… What about?"

"It was about Al. He was being tortured by a blonde, French lady. And… and then she killed him. I'm going back to Hogwarts to look after my brother."

He looks like he's about to break so I sit up and pat a spot on my bed so he can sit. "James, you really don't have anything to worry about. Landen is there and-"

He cuts me off with a bitter scoff. "_Landen_… I don't trust him one bit."

I narrow my eyes at him and frown. "Why is it Freddie and Al can get past what he did, which wasn't even legitimate, yet you can't?"

He returns my frown and icily says "Because he has you."

I roll my eyes and smirk. "Well that should be all the more reason to trust him. He obviously has great taste… And he doesn't _have _me. I'm not some bloody item that can be possessed…"

He smirks at me and shrugs. "I just wanted to come in here and tell you that I'm not going to give up on you."

"Okay, fine." I say nonchalantly.

He nods and walks to the door, pausing before he leaves, and turns around to me. "I'm really sorry I'm leaving, Ariana. It's just something I have to do."

I nod and say "I understand. I would do the same thing if I were in your shoes… Oh! Hold on!" I jump out of bed and run over to my purple bag. I reach my arm into the bag and dig around for a moment. I find what I'm looking for and quickly scribble notes on them. I fold up the letters, placing them in an envelope, and then hand them to James. "Can you give these to Landen and Al when you get back please?"

He takes them from my hand and nods. I put my hand on my hip and give him a stern look. "Promise?"

He nods again then leans down and plants a kiss on my cheek before apparating out of the apartment with a loud "POP". I stand in the doorway, looking at the spot he disappeared from for a few moments before getting back into bed and falling back asleep.

**Landen' POV**

"James?"

He looks up from his bag, surprise apparent on his face. "Landen? What the hell are you doing in Ariana's room?"

"What the hell are you doing back? Are all of you back?" I walk out of the room hurriedly and look around.

James shakes his head and glowers at me. "Nope, just me. Sorry to disappoint."

I shrug my shoulders and put my wand in my back pocket. "No matter. How was trip? Why are you back so early?"

His glower deepens as he answers. "I came to protect Al."

I throw up my hands and laugh cynically. "Are you bloody kidding me? Why is it that everyone else can trust me but you can't?"

He tosses an envelope at me and says loudly, "Because you were so good at pretending to be a slytherine last year! You were so bloody good at fooling everyone! How do I know you're not doing it again? Ariana is taking a big risk keeping you around and I don't like it! We've had enough people die already! We don't need anymore!"

The door to James' room opens and Al steps out, yawning widely. "Landen, what the bloody hell are you yelli-?" He sees James and stops talking. "James? When did you get back?"

James looks at Al with a smile. "I'll explain later. First, Ariana gave me a letter to give to you." He walks over and hands Al a white envelope, which reminds me that he threw an envelope at me. _Is mine a letter from Ariana too?_

I pick up the envelope off the floor and walk back into Ariana's room, shutting the door behind me. I sit down on the bed and slowly pull out the piece of parchment, unfolding it quickly as soon as it's free from the envelope. Ariana's familiar slanted writing covers the parchment.

_Landen,_

_I just want to start out by saying that I absolutely loved Al on the broadcast tonight. After hearing that Andromeda is there, I was really worried about you two. She's not doing anything to you two, is she?_

_I also wanted to let you know that everything is going well with us. We are staying with some old friends here and things are going as planned. For the most part... I just wanted to let you know so that you don't worry too much._

_I have to go now but I will see you soon._

_-Ari_

I fold up the parchment and pocket it. I lie back down on the bed and close my eyes, finding sleep quickly.

**Ari's POV**

"He WHAT?"

"He went back to Hogwarts, Fred… He feels like he has to protect Al. You would do the same thing if you thought Roxie was in trouble." I take a bite of my cereal as I explain James' logic to him.

He shakes his head with a sigh and turns the television on. "Fine. I guess I can see what you mean…"

The news flashes on and I turn my attention to it. We've been watching the news daily, looking for anything that could help us. A video of the President plays across the screen and I watch intently.

"…_The President will be in New York City this week for the lighting of the Christmas tree…"_

I look at Freddie with wide eyes. "Christmas is already this week?"

He nods distractedly as he continues to stare at the TV. "Yea, I guess. Why?"

"I don't know… I was hoping we would be home by Christmas…" I put my empty cereal bowl into the sink and sigh.

Eli walks out of his room, stretching and yawning loudly. "What time is it?"

"11:30 am." I toss a box of cereal and a bowl at him. He catches them graciously and pours himself some cereal. He tosses the box back to me and I toss a spoon and some milk to him.

He looks around and frowns. "Where's James?"

Freddie scoffs loudly. "The bloody prat went back to Hogwarts."

Eli sputters loudly as he chokes on the cereal in his mouth. "He WHAT?"

I roll my eyes and slap him on the back to try and help him recover. "You are as bad as Freddie… He went back because he thought his younger brother was in trouble. Imagine if you thought Bri or I was in trouble. You would do the same thing, wouldn't you?"

He nods his head as he finally recovers from his choking fit. "Yea I guess so… But I thought you said your headmaster sent him with you specifically?"

"She did, but extenuating circumstances came up. I still have Freddie. I will be fine. Now, what are we doing for Christmas?" I walk over to Brittney's door and loudly bang on it. "Bri! Get up already!"

Brittney walks out of her room glowering at me. "What the piss do you want you whore?"

I stifle a laugh as Freddie turns around and looks at her with wide eyes. "Wow Bri… Are we going to do this every morning?"

She growls at me. "That's up to you Ari… I hope you'll make the right decision tomorrow morning…"

Freddie, Eli and I burst into a fit of laughter at her response which earns Eli and me a glare from her that shuts us up.

Eli smirks at me and says "To answer your earlier question, we are going to my dad's for Christmas." I frown at the thought of spending Christmas with their father. He never really liked me because he was convinced that I was a bad influence on Brittney. Eli sees my frown and laughs. "Don't worry. He's lightened up since you last saw him. I'm sure he doesn't hate you anymore…"

Freddie smirks. "_HATE_? Ariana what did you do?"

I laugh and shrug my shoulders. "I didn't do ANYTHING! He just really hates me…"

Brittney laughs loudly and shakes her head. "Lies! We used to get in tons of trouble back at Salem! There was this one time Ariana and I were class and she accidentally turned a teacher into a rat! Then she blamed me for it! I got a week of detention!"

I smirk. "Okay so he has a good reason to hate me…" I look back at the news, which is still playing on the TV, and gasp. "Bloody hell… That's Caledon!"

**Alright yall, as always I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions about this chapter! :)**

**I would also like to thank everyone who added this story to their alerts and also thank everyone who left a review for me. Yall have no idea how much I appreciate it! :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx**


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 13**

**Ari's POV**

"WHAT? Where? The only person I see is the President…"

I pause the TV and get up off the couch, crossing the room in a few strides, and point to a spot behind the President. "He's right here!"

Standing behind the President, who is standing at a podium giving a speech, is a tall, lanky man with no hair. He is dressed in a black suit and has a sneer on his face. The image may be a bit pixelated and fuzzy, but I would recognize his face anywhere.

Freddie steps closer to the screen with narrowed eyes, trying to recognize Caledon's blurry face. "Bloody hell… It IS Caledon. Ariana this is BAD…"

"You think I don't know that Freddie? What are we going to do?"

Freddie looks at the TV screen again. "Um… Ariana? It's worse than we thought…"

"What Fred? How is it worse?" I can feel a group of eyes staring at me as my panic level rises.

He gestures for me to come forward and points at the President's eyes. "Look familiar?"

I clench my teeth and close my eyes. "Shit…"

Finally someone else speaks. "What the hell is going on? Why are you two freaking out so much?"

I turn around and rub my hands over my face. "He's under the Imperius curse…"

Brittney sighs. "That doesn't answer Eli's question. WHO is under the Imperius curse?"

"The President! Come here. Do you see how milky his eyes are?"

They get up next to the TV and narrow their eyes to see. Eli responds first. "Yea I see that, but how do you know he doesn't just have cataracts?"

I roll my eyes at him. "Because I'm not daft, Eli."

Freddie grabs my arm and gives me a stern look. "She knows it's the Imperius curse because she has seen it before."

Brittney gives us a curious look. "Where?"

I glance at Freddie then back to Brittney and Eli. "It doesn't matter where or when."

Freddie shoots me another stern look as he says, "How about we direct all questions at me for now? Ariana seems a bit testy… She saw it last year when I was under the Imperius curse."

Brittney nods. "What is it exactly? It's not really something we learn about here."

"We don't really learn about it at Hogwarts either." He says with a shrug. "But, it's a rather calming experience. Like all the worries in the world have disappeared and been replaced with relief. But you are at the complete control of whoever cast the spell, which is rather unpleasant. When I was under the curse last year, I ended up almost killing my cousin and James' younger brother Al. And that was just so I could get past him to kill Ariana! The President being under the Imperius curse is a really bad thing because it means Caledon has control of the American government."

I open my mouth to say something but Freddie points his finger at me. "NO! If you aren't going to be nice then you don't get to say anything!"

I roll my eyes and frown. "You're such a prat!"

Eli smirks at me and says "That didn't _sound _very nice…"

I flip Eli off and look to Freddie. "Fred, what are we going to do?"

He shakes his head with a sigh. "I don't know… But we'll think of something, I'm sure of it."

(Break)

I look at the clock as I crawl into bed. It's 12:15 am and I'm FINALLY getting to bed. I pull the covers up over me and rest my head on the pillow. The moment my eyes close I fall asleep.

_I'm sitting in the Franklyn living room again, staring at the TV, which still has the frozen image of the President delivering a speech and Caledon smirking in the background. I let out a sigh and quietly say "What are we going to do?"_

_Suddenly the paused Caledon unfreezes and begins walking toward me. "Tsk, tsk little fireball. Giving up so soon?"_

_I glare at him as I stand up. "Like hell I am."_

_He chuckles cynically as he steps out of the television. "Good. I don't want to be robbed of the chance to kill you myself."_

"_Me either. What are you doing with the President?"_

_He sneers at me and wags his finger. "Oh I think you already know. But I do want to tell you that I'm not targeting who you think I am."_

_I continue to glare at him. "Who are you targeting then?"_

"_Now where would the fun be in me telling you?" He runs his finger along the couch as he speaks._

_I grunt through clenched teeth. "Then why the hell even bring it up? Why do I make my dreams so freaking impossible?"_

_He cackles icily and gets in my face. "Oh this is very much so a real conversation." I glower at him and shove him away from me. He sneers and gets in my face again. "Do I frighten you, little fireball?"_

_I smirk at him and shake my head. "No. You just really need a mint. But I guess murderers don't need to worry about bad breath, do they? And STOP calling me that!"_

_His sneer turns to a grimace. "I can't wait to kill you, to wipe the smartass grin off your face. I will relish your death like a lover's embrace."_

_I laugh coldly. "Like you would know anything about love! You're just a bitter wizard who is stuck dwelling in the past."_

_His sneer returns. "Speaking of love, how's your little boyfriend? He did such a great job pretending to be one of us… He even had ME fooled. My oh my do I have plans for him the next time I see him… Until then, Andromeda will have to take care of him."_

_I pull out my wand and point it at him. "Don't you DARE threaten him you asshole!"_

_He backs away back into the TV with his hands raised defensively. "Until next time, little fireball. Oh, by the way, you might as well head back to Hogwarts. You aren't going to be able to get anywhere near my political puppet any time soon."_

_I close my eyes and wave my wand at the TV, causing it to explode. "Bloody asshole."_

I open my eyes and see a smoking mass of what used to be a television in front of me. "Shit!"

Eli comes running out of his room with his wand raised. "What the hell?" His voice is still heavy with sleep. He catches sight of the charred remains of his TV and groans. "Really Ari? You couldn't have blown up ANYTHING else?"

I sit down on the couch and sigh. "I need Freddie. Can you go wake him up please?"

He takes a seat next to me. "What's wrong?"

"I had a dream, or a not dream, about Caledon."

Eli looks at me then stands up. "Um, yea. I'm going to go get Freddie."

I sleepily smirk at him. "I thought so…"

He throws open Freddie's door and drags him out of the room. "Let's go, Freddie. Ariana needs to talk."

Freddie flails his arms around. "Well I need to sleep! Can't I talk to her in the morning?"

Eli shakes his head and drops him on the couch next to me. "Obviously not! Look at what she did to the TV!"

I grin at Eli. "Thank you Eli-kins! I wuv you big brother!" Eli nods with a yawn and walks back to his room, shutting the door silently. I look at Freddie and shrug. "Sorry to wake you, but it's rather important."

Freddie yawns then looks at me attentively. "I'm listening."

I tell him about my "dream", making sure not to leave anything out. Once I finish, Freddie lets out a sigh and leans back on the couch. "What the hell did he mean by 'I'm not targeting who you think I am'? And what was with that 'little fireball' crap?"

I shake my head. "My father used to call me 'little fireball' when I was little. I didn't think anyone knew about that, but obviously I was wrong. As for what he meant, I honestly don't know… What I do know is that we should head back to Hogwarts. He's right when he says we won't be able to get anywhere near the President right now. Plus I don't think we would get anywhere talking to him, since he's under the Imperius curse."

Freddie frowns at me. "So we're giving up then?"

I shake my head again. "No, no. We're just biding our time is all. I think I have a plan…"

Eli comes back out of his room clothed for the day and says in his best accent, "Alright you lot. Fill me in on what's happening."

Freddie looks at me with wide eyes. "Ari, I didn't even think about it before! Eli, Bri and their mum are going to have to move…"

**Landen's POV**

I stuff a piece of toast in my mouth bitterly as I stare across the great hall to the Slytherine table. Sitting next to my dimwit of a stepbrother is the girl who murdered Bella and Logan, Arowena Malevon. Al comes in and sits next to me and smirks. "Did someone wake up on the wrong side of the bed today?"

I continue to glare at Castor and Arowena so Al follows my gaze. "Bloody hell… What is _she _doing here?"

I shrug my shoulders and shake my head but I don't say anything. Castor and Arowena get up from the table and wave at me and Al with a smirk. I slam my toast on my plate and get up from the table. I storm out of the great hall after them, Al hot on my tail. Before I can do anything rash, Al grabs my shoulder and shakes his head. "They're not worth it, mate."

I turn to him with wide eyes. "SHE murdered two, TWO, students! And he's a complete asshole! PLEASE explain to me how they're not worth it?"

He looks at me for a moment then releases my shoulder. "I'm coming with you then. I can't let you go get your ass kicked alone."

I smirk at him. "Would James approve of you coming with me?"

"Absolutely!"

I give him a skeptical look and he grimaces. "We just won't tell him…"

Just then, James comes around the corner. "Tell who what?"

I shake my head. "Nothing. Come on Al."

This time James shakes his head. "Actually, I was looking for you Al. Scorpius Malfoy says that Professor Clarimonde has been looking for you. She says you have detention with her."

I look at Al with wide eyes and see a bit of fear flash across his face. "You can't go to that Al…"

He smirks, his confidence coming back, and shakes his head. "I'll be fine mate. It's just detention." With that he walks away from us rapidly.

As soon as he's out of sight and earshot I turn to James and shake my head. "I thought the whole point of you coming back was to _protect_ Al!"

"It is!"

I let out a laugh. "Well you're not doing a very good job of it! She'll hurt him if he goes to detention with her!"

He frowns. "Why? She's just a professor?"

I roll my eyes and run off after Al. "Such a daft son of a-"

"I can still hear you!"

I laugh angrily. "Good, you tosser!"

I look back and see him running after me. We round the corner and run directly into Castor and Arowena. I point my wand at Arowena and narrow my eyes. "You're bloody lucky I'm looking for someone or I would kill you right here and now."

She smirks, her hazel eyes showing the malice she feels, and looks to Castor. "That sounds like a threat… I think that earns him a detention, right?"

Castor nods with a menacing grin as he points to James. "Him too, right? He counts as an accomplice?"

They grab our shirts and drag us toward Andromeda's classroom. They open the door and drag us in. I look around and see Al sitting at a table. Andromeda sees us and claps her hands together. "Very good! I'm so glad you were able to find him! Who is zee ozher one? No matter." She looks at us and gestures to a chair. "Take a seat.

Arowena and Castor shove us into chairs and smirk at us before leaving the room, shutting the door with a resounding "THUD". As soon as it does, Andromeda looks at us sternly. "Do you know why you're here?"

I laugh loudly. "Please. Enlighten us."

She glares at me as she passes out parchment and quills. "You are here because you sink it iz okay to fight in school."

James clears his throat with a frowns. "Okay one: I wasn't fighting. And two: you can't give detention over a holiday so, if you don't mind, I will just be-"

"SIT DOWN MISTER POTTER!"

James drops back into his seat with wide eyes. I smirk at him as I shake my head. Andromeda clears her throat and straightens her robes. "You sree shall be writing lines."

I roll my eyes. "How many and what will they say?"

"You will write 'I will not start fights' one hundred times." She takes a seat behind her desk and begins working on something.

I let out a sigh and begin writing.

_I will not start fights_

_I will not start fights_

_I will not start fights…_

I glare at the paper for a moment, then smirk. I go back to the first line and change it to:

_I will not start fights, only finish them._

I write the rest of my lines this way, finishing at the same time as both Al and James. We all get up and give her our parchments. She looks over James', then Al's, then mine. She nods to James and Al and says "You two are free to go. Landen, please stay back a moment."

James leaves the classroom hurriedly, dragging Al out behind him, but not before Al can shoot me a worried glance. The door shuts loudly again, leaving me alone in the room with Andromeda. She begins straightening things on her desk. I sigh loudly and say, "Why exactly do I have to stay after?"

She slaps a stack of parchments down loudly. "Landen, zee Dark Lord iz not pleased that you are still alive…"

I smirk at her and shrug. "Sorry to disappoint."

She grins maliciously at me. "Oh it iz no disappointment. Zat just means I get to do as I please wiss you. He haz said zat as long as I do not kill you, I can do as I please. And since you enjoy 'finishing' fights so much…" She draws out her wand and sneers. "Crucio!"

**James' POV**

Al and I are sitting in my room talking after our detention with Andromeda. "Al, what the hell were you thinking? Pushing Castor? Was that really your best decision? I can't keep you safe if you don't help me!"

He laughs and shakes his head. "James, this isn't like when we were six and seven and you used to take the fall for me, I'm sixteen! I'm pretty sure I can manage to take care of myself now! Not that I don't appreciate the gesture, but you can't protect me and take care of me forever. What exactly are you trying to protect me from, anyways?"

I let out a sigh and plop down on my bed. "Landen…"

Al laughs again, but this time it's more sarcastic. "James! Are you bloody kidding me? Landen is one of my mates! Why the hell wouldn't you trust him?"

"Because he's tricked us before! Who's to say he isn't doing it again? You don't know that he's not playing you for sure!"

Al shakes his head. "No, you're right. I don't know that. But Ariana and Freddie trust him so I trust him. He hasn't betrayed that trust yet, and I don't think he will."

I shake my head and frown. "I just don't want to lose my brother…"

Suddenly we hear "Aw! That was so sweet!"

We whip our heads around and see Ariana, flanked by Freddie, Eli and Brittney, leaning against the door frame with a smirk on her face. "Miss me?"

**As always, I hope you lovely readers enjoyed this chapter! I would be absolutely thrilled to hear your thoughts and opinions about it! :)**

**I also want to thank everyone who added this story to their favorites and alerts, everyone who has left a review, and everyone else who reade this story. I love all of yall and yall make me smile! :)**

**I will post the next chapter as soon as I have it typed up.**

**Thanks! :)**

**-Tx**


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 14**

**Ari's POV**

"What do you mean we'll have to move?"

Freddie breathes a sigh and looks at Eli. "Caledon has seen the inside of your flat, which means he can apparate here at any time. That puts you and your family in danger and the only way to get out of danger is to move."

I shake my head. "They can't move! They've been here for eighteen years!"

Eli nods in agreement. "She's right. My mom will never go for it."

Brittney's door opens as she walks out yawning. "Morning…"

I snap my fingers and grin. "I've got it! You three can go stay with Aunt Laura while Freddie and I go back to Hogwarts!"

Brittney frowns. "Why are we staying with Aunt Laura?"

"Because now Caledon knows where you live so staying here would be really dangerous. You have to leave… I can't have anything happening to you lot when we end up fighting Caledon."

She scoffs and Eli shakes his head. "We 'lot' aren't going anywhere! We're going with you and we're going to fight with you!"

I laugh at Brittney and shake my head. "The hell you are! You LOT are going to stay with Aunt Laura and that's final!"

Eli gets up from the couch and sighs. "Let me go call mom and finalize everything…" He grabs Brittney's arm and drags her to his room, shutting the door behind them. Freddie and I sit on the couch in silence, each lost in our own thoughts, as we wait for Eli and Brittney to come back out. After a few moments, they exit Eli's room and sit on the couch with us. Eli looks at me with a smirk and says, "Well, it's final. Mom is going to stay with Aunt Laura and Brittney and I are coming to Hogwarts with you."

I look at him with wide eyes and my mouth agape. "Are you… Are you bloody kidding me?"

He shakes his head firmly. "No Ariana, I'm not 'bloody' kidding you. I can't believe you would even suggest that we go into hiding while you go out and save the American wizarding world! We as a family lost you once already and we don't plan on doing it again, so as Bri said before, WE ARE GOING WITH YOU."

Freddie looks at me and sighs. "We could use all the help we can get, you know…"

I groan and throw up my hands in defeat. "Fine! If you're going to come with, you better go pack fast because we leave in an hour."

They smile at Freddie and run to their rooms. Freddie and I place a few protective charms around the apartment so that it can remain safe until mom gets back and then go pack up our own stuff.

Once we've all packed, Freddie and I apparate us all to the cemetery connected to the prefect bathroom. We sneak from the cemetery, through the tunnel and out of the prefect's bathroom. Once we get inside the school, it takes everything Freddie and I have to keep Brittney's and Eli's gasps of wonder and delight at bay. We get close to Gryffindor tower when we run into Monroe. "Found some more followers have you?" She then looks at Eli and Brittney with a sneer and says "Be careful with this one or you'll end up dead by the end of the term."

I roll my eyes and smirk at her. "What are you doing here Monroe? Is your own family so sick of you that even THEY don't want you back for winter holiday?"

She grimaces at me. "I decided on my own accord to spend holiday here!"

I nod and smirk again. "To get more snogging time in with Rylan, no doubt."

She glares at me and balls her hands into fists then relaxes. She looks at Eli and grins maliciously. "ANOTHER boy huh? No worries. It will be no problem for me to steal this one from you too."

I narrow my eyes at her and raise my wand up, waving it at her grinning face. Her eyes widen into shock as she realizes what I've just done to her. She tries to say something but all that comes out of her mouth are grunts and groans. I push past Monroe and continue down the corridor, everyone else following behind me. Freddie catches up to me and gives me a stern look. "Really? Did you really langlock her?"

I shrug my shoulders and smirk at him. "It MAY be one of the many nonverbal spells I know…"

Eli chimes in from behind us. "I think she should have done so much more!"

Freddie turns back to him and sighs. "She has. That was one of the nicer things Ariana has done to her… Although I'm not saying she hasn't deserved everything Ari's ever done to her."

We get to Gryffindor tower and stop outside the portrait. Freddie quickly says the password and leads us into the common room. I look at one of the red couches in front of the fire and smile as I remember back to two years ago when Carter spent his winter holiday sleeping on that couch.

I snap out of my stupor and gesture for everyone to follow me as I lead them into the Heads common room. I am about to lead them to my room when I hear talking coming from James' room. I gesture again for them to follow me and sneak over to his room. I lean my shoulder against his door frame and listen to James' and Al's conversation.

"I just don't want to lose my brother…"

I grin and say "Aw! That was so sweet!"

Both James' and Al's heads whirl around and face us. I give them a smirk and say, "Miss me?"

Al jumps up from the floor and rushes at me, grabbing my shoulders and pulling me into a hug. "Of course! How was America?"

James sees our bags and pulls Al back. "Maybe we should let them all unpack and _then_ she can tell us about the trip."

I nod my thanks to James and look at Al with a smile. "How about I tell you WHILE I unpack?"

He grins at me and nods. "Perfect."

I turn around and see Eli and Brittney, reminding me that Al hasn't met them yet. "Oh! Al! This is Eli and his sister Brittney. They are my 'family' from America. They're going to be staying here with us for a bit."

Brittney grabs my arm and whispers "Are all English boys cute, or just the ones you know?"

My mind flashes to Castor and I grimace. "Believe me, I don't only know cute guys…"

James grabs my bag and walks out of his room, shooting me a questioning look as he does. Before I can question the look Al grabs my arm with a grin. "Tell me about the trip."

We walk into my room and I begin unpacking my bag. "Well, we started off the trip by setting a forest in Colorado on fire and-"

Freddie holds up his hands with a smirk. "Whoa whoa whoa. WHO set the forest on fire?"

"Ugh… Okay! I set the forest on fire… ANYWAYS! After we set the forest on fire, we apparated to New York and met up with these two here and we spent the remainder of the trip with them. We didn't complete what McGonagall asked of us, but that's because Caledon has the President under the Imperius curse. Oh and now he knows where these two live, which is why-"

"Al? Are you in here?"

I poke my head out from my room and look into the common room. "Landen?"

He looks at me and squints his eyes. "Ariana?"

I jump up off the floor and run out of my room. "Landen!" I rush at him and wrap my arms around his neck with a grin. "I missed you!"

He winces at the contact a bit but returns my hug. "I missed you too. I'm glad you're alright! How was the trip?"

"It was… interesting. Come on, I was just telling Al about it and I have some people for you to meet." I grab his arm and pull him into my room. As soon as I do, I hear Al take in a sharp breath and say "What the hell?"

James grimaces and says, "What happened to you?"

I shake my head. "Nothing… What are you tal-"

James cuts me off by shaking his head. "Not you… Landen."

I turn to see what they're talking about and gasp when I see it. I don't know how I didn't notice it in the common room… Landen has a multitude of small cuts on his face that are still slightly oozing blood along with a big purple welt on his cheek. He has a cut on his neck and his shirt has a big rip across the chest. I walk over to my dresser and grab him a new shirt, tossing it to him quietly. He walks to my bathroom and is about to shut the door when I clear my throat. "Nope. Change your shirt out here."

I know Landen pretty well, and he's not exactly shy about changing in front of people so I'm not sure why he is going to go change his shirt in the bathroom…

He gives me a pleading look. "Why Ari?"

I cross my arms and look at him firmly. "Because I know you're hiding something and I have a hunch that it has to do with all those cuts."

He sighs and pulls his shirt off slowly with a grimace, revealing multiple bruises along his torso and a large cut across his chest. I clench my teeth and step forward. "Who the hell did this?"

He looks around at everyone nervously so I walk forward and gently grab his face, forcing him to look at me. "WHO. DID. THIS?"

Al chimes in. "He was in detention with Andromeda before this…"

I drop my hands from his face with wide eyes as I remember what Caledon said in my dream. _"Speaking of love, how's your little boyfriend? He did such a great job pretending to be one of us… He even had ME fooled. My oh my do I have plans for him the next time I see him… Until then, Andromeda will have to take care of him."_

I clench my teeth again and narrow my eyes. "That bitch is dead… I'll bloody kill her!"

I grab my wand and storm out of the room, with Al, James, and Freddie jumping up in protest. They unanimously shout "NO! Bad idea!" as I leave the room.

I get as far as the Heads common room before someone yanks my wand from my hand. "Ariana, no."

I twirl around angrily and throw my hands up angrily. "Why the hell not Landen? What could you possibly say that could convince me otherwise?"

He laughs angrily. "Nothing! It won't matter what I say because you're going to want to kill her anyways! You're so bloody stubborn!"

I raise an eyebrow at him. "Is that so?"

"Yes! You should have let me come with you!"

I laugh sarcastically. "No! Nobody else needed to die or get hurt for me!"

"NOBODY DIED ON THE TRIP!" He is towering over me now, which causes me to back up against the table behind me.

I clench my fists and glare up at him. "We didn't know that for a fact! We didn't know nothing was going to happen! And if something had happened, I couldn't let anyone sacrifice themselves for me!"

He scoffs at me. "IT'S NOT YOUR BLOODY CHOICE!"

"If they are dying for me then-"

Landen scoffs again. "Who said they are dying for you? Don't be so selfish! Maybe they are dying while fighting for something they believe in!"

I widen my eyes and laugh. "Selfish? SELFISH? If not wanting to lose anyone else is selfish, then fine! I'm selfish!"

He nods. "Good! Now that we agree…" He lifts me up onto the table behind me and grabs my face with one hand while wrapping his other arm around my waist and pulling me into a hungry kiss. I forget my anger toward him as soon as he kisses me and wrap my arms around his neck, though the kiss doesn't last long.

Eli clears his throat awkwardly, reminding us that he and the others are still there in my room. Landen pulls away and smirks. "I really did miss you. Now how about we go talk about your trip."

I poke him on the nose and frown. "You're an asshole… you know that? But a very persuasive asshole… Let's go."

I grab my wand back from him, hop off the table and walk into my room, ignoring the stupid grins on everyone's faces. I point to Landen and look at Brittney and Eli. "This asshole is Landen."

Eli smirks at me and says, "Really? Asshole, huh? Do you kiss ALL the assholes here, or just this one?"

Landen lets out a laugh. "Who is this guy? I think we're going to be good friends…"

I roll my eyes at Landen and point to Eli. "THAT asshole is my 'big brother' Eli. And that is his sister, and one of my best mates, Brittney. They're going to be hiding here for a bit."

Al realizes what I was saying before and nods while saying "Oh! So they're hiding here because Caledon knows where they live?" I look at him and nod. He gets a confused look on his face. "Wait, how does he know where they live?"

I sigh and sit down on my bed. "I had a dream, of sorts…"

Landen looks at me worriedly. "Of sorts?"

"Well it seemed like a dream at first but by the end of it I'm not so sure it was. I will tell you about it later." I look at James, Freddie and Al with a grin. "We still have a week left of holiday. How about we visit the Burrow?"

They all grin back at me and nod. Al looks to Eli, Brittney and Landen with a smirk. "I think that's a brilliant idea. We can introduce our new friends to the family and we will be back in time for the Christmas party!"

James claps his hands cheerfully. "Alright! Then it's settled! Everyone go pack! We'll meet back here and leave in two hours."

(Break)

The two hours passed fairly quickly. Before I knew it we were meeting up in my room and getting ready to leave. James and I take a quick head count to make sure we have everyone and then make our way back to the cemetery. We run into Monroe again but this time she runs away crying when she sees James. I look over at him with a smirk. "Rough break-up, huh?"

He returns my smirk and nods. "Rough is an understatement. She tried to kill me!"

"She couldn't have really tried to kill you! She's rather weak…"

He laughs loudly. "Hence why I said she 'tried'. I was really more like she was hugging my throat with her hands."

I let out a laugh then clasp my hands over my mouth. "She tried to choke you to death? Merlin, I wish I could have seen it!"

He shakes his head with a smile. "I almost felt bad breaking up with her. Almost…"

"Don't even worry about it. She has that loony prat Rylan to keep her company." We get to the prefect bathroom and James says the password. We get into the bathroom, go through the tunnel and get into the cemetery. Every time I enter the cemetery I get an uneasy feeling. I grab James' arm and look around warily. "Hey Jamie, why do you think McGonagall has left this open?"

He looks at me with a raised eyebrow. "You called me Jamie…"

I roll my eyes at him. "Is that _really_ the thing to be focusing on right now?"

He chuckles and shakes his head. "Sorry, you're right. You just haven't called me that in a really long time… Anyways, I'm not really sure why she's kept this open. It doesn't seem too safe, does it?"

I shake my head. "No, not really. It's a direct path into Hogwarts and it's fairly secret. I mean, we've snuck out of the school from here at least twice now."

Eli clears his throat loudly. "If you two are finished, the rest of us are standing back here awkwardly. Can we go now?"

I look back at him and roll my eyes. "Sorry. Let's get going." Brittney grabs onto Freddie's arm, Landen and Eli grab on to mine, and Al grabs onto James' arm. James, Freddie and I all nod to each other and I say "We're going to the field outside the shed." With that being said, we apparate to the Burrow.

We land with a soft crunch on the long grass outside the Burrow. I am taken aback by what I see playing out in front of us.

Out in front of the Burrow, a large fight is ensuing, with rogue spells flying around wildly, between the adults and an onslaught of Death Eaters. I look over to James and Freddie with wide eyes as we all pull out our wands and run toward the fight. I look over at James and say, "Jamie, we have to find Lily…"

Al looks at me and shakes his head. "You go help, I'll find my sister."

He breaks away from us and run toward the house. I look at Eli and he understands immediately. He runs after Al, leaving the rest of us to go help the adults.

Freddie and breaks off to go help his dad while Landen leaves to go help his dad. I look over to Brittney and point to the small fires that have broken out along the house. "Bri, can you go take care of those fires before they reach the house?"

She nods and takes off toward the fires. I see Ginny pinned against a wall with two Death Eaters firing spells at her. I wave my wand and hit one of them with a stupefy spell while James hits the other with another spell. They both fall to the ground limply. Ginny sees us and smiles. "Impeccable timing you two."

James smirks at me as he hits another Death Eater with a spell. "It's good to be home."

I nod to him with a grin and shoot an Immobulus spell at a Death Eater as I say, "Just try not to get knocked out this time."

He shoots a spell at the frozen Death Eater then rolls his eyes and flips me off with a laugh. "You just worry about yourself. Duck!"

I duck down and James shoots a Death Eater who was standing behind me. He extends a hand down to me and helps me up off the ground with a smirk. I roll my eyes and point past him. "Don't look so proud of yourself and go help Ron."

He nods and runs in the direction of Ron, who is fighting with three different Death Eaters. I see Freddie and George being attacked by four Death Eaters. One of them sees me coming to help them and shoots a spell at me. The spell skims my left arm, rendering it temporarily useless. I wave my wand and hit him in the chest with stupefy spell and then turn my attention to the Death Eater standing next to him. I barely dodge the spell he shoots at me as I run closer to them. I wave my wand at him and shoot a spell, but he avoids it. Since all of his attention is turned toward me, Freddie takes the opportunity to hit him with a spell that shoots him into the trunk of a tree. George takes out the remaining two Death Eaters with a laugh then gives me a nod before he and Freddie run off to help Roxanne and Angelina.

I look to my left and see Al protectively hovering over Lily while hiding behind a shielding spell as two Death Eaters continually fire spells at him.

My left arm is regaining feeling so I use it to propel myself toward Al faster. Apparently James saw Al too and had the same idea as me because he gets to Al at the same time I do. One of the Death Eaters shoots a spell at me but I spin away from it. Although I did dodge the spell, the Death Eater swings at me, connecting his fist with my face. I fall to the ground and a huff of air escapes my lips as the wind is knocked from my lungs. James hits the two Death Eaters with a body-locking spell and then looks at me with a smirk.

I roll my eyes and sit up. "Are you following me?"

He laughs as he grabs my arm and helps me up off the ground. "Fat chance! I got here first!" He touches my lip and frowns. "He really got you good, didn't he? Are you alright?"

I smirk at him as I touch a cut on his cheek. "Yea I'm fine. You're not looking to hot yourself. When did you get this?"

He furrows his brow and laughs. "I'm not too sure actually…"

James helps Al up and I let Lily jump onto my back. The four of us head out from the side of the house to check on everyone else. I look at Al and frown. "Where's Eli?"

Al rubs at a cut on his arm and shrugs. "I'm not sure. I sent him to go off to go help Landen once I found Lily."

We get to the front of the house and I hear Landen calling for me. I scan the landscape in front of me until I see Landen. He is kneeling next to someone and motioning for me to go over there. "Hey Lily, can you stay here with James really quick?"

She nods and hops off my back. I run toward Landen and once I get close enough to realize who it is that's on the ground, I break into a sprint. I drop down next to the body and grab his hand. "Eli?"

**Uh-oh! What happened to Eli? Is he going to be alright? I guess you'll have to wait to find out! :P**

**Let me know what you thought about the chapter!**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx**


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 15**

**Ari's POV**

"ELI!" I hit him in the chest and let out a yell. "Dammit Eli! Answer me!" I can feel warm tears running down my face as I hit him in the chest again. "Dammit Eli…"

I hear Grandma Weasley pushing through the ring of on looking adults. "Move, move. Get out of my way." She gets next to me, looks Eli over then breathes out a sigh. "He's just been stupefied. Ariana, love, I'm going to need you to move."

I shake my head. "No. I want to help."

She looks behind me and sighs again. Someone lifts me off the ground and pulls me away from the scene. "C'mon. Let's go unpack."

"James, I don't exactly feel like unpacking…" I wipe my hand across my face and sigh shakily.

He smirks at me. "Good, because I don't have our bags."

"Wait, where is Bri?" I look around for her, straining against the arm that is tight around my waist.

He sighs as he leads me into the house. "Freddie is with her, she's fine."

I shake my head and stifle a sob. "Merlin, she's never going to forgive me for this…"

"Hey now…" He sits down on the couch and pulls down next to him. I curl my legs up, wrapping my arms around my legs. He wraps his arms around my shoulders and continues. "…You have to give Bri more credit than that. She may be upset, but she won't blame you for this."

I shake my head again. "You don't know that, Jamie…" I extend my legs across his lap and lean my head against his shoulder.

He rubs my shoulder and sighs. "No, I don't... But you really do need to give her more credit than that. Why are they here, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Well, as I said before, Caledon knows where they live. I recommended that they all go live with their aunt, but Eli and Bri weren't having it. They insisted on coming with us and fighting alongside us and all that. I told them no at first, but they insisted. So now they're here…"

Suddenly the door bursts open and Grandma Weasley rushes through the door directing George and Teddy, who are carrying Eli's body, up the stairs. I watch them until their bodies finally disappear from my view. I let out a sigh. "I think I need some air…"

"I was just about to say the same thing. Let's go for a walk." He lifts my legs and gets up off the couch, grabbing my hand and pulling me off the couch. He places his hand on the small of my back as we walk into the kitchen and we find Lily, Al and Landen sitting at the table talking. Landen looks the same as before, cut up and bruised. Al has a cut on his arm and a small scratch on his cheek, but other than that he is unscathed. Lily is completely free of injuries, which makes me happy since she's only 8 and has no business being in this mess.

James clears his throat. "We are going to go for a walk. Would any of you like to come with us?"

Landen eyes James' arm behind me and frowns. "Um, no… I'll just stay here."

James shrugs his shoulders. "Alright, suit yourself. Al? Lily? How about you?"

Al shakes his head after shooting Landen a nervous glance and Lily follows suit. I'm a bit curious about the glances shot Landen's way, but I'm not really in the mood to talk to people so I make a mental note to ask about it later. James shrugs his shoulders again. "Okay… Well if mum or dad ask where we are, we're going out to the lake. Come get us if anything changes with Eli."

He leads me out of the kitchen, grabs our scarves, and leads me out the back door. We walk through the long grass in a direction opposite the house. I turn around and see Ron and Harry picking up the bodies of the Death Eaters. I turn back around and we continue to walk in silence. After a bit, we finally come upon the lake. The only reason I know it's the right place is because James gets a big grin on his face. I get a quick glimpse of my surroundings before James is running down the hill in front of us, dragging me by the hand behind him.

From what I saw, there was a single, rather large oak tree that has a weathered rope hanging from one of the branches and is surrounded by short grass. A few feet away from the tree is a placid lake that is lined by small pebbles and seems to go on for miles.

I stumble down the last part of the hill as we finally get to the bottom. Once we get to the edge of the lake, James bends down and picks up a flat rock. "Do you know how to skip rocks?"

I look at him with a slight smirk. "Do you?"

He chucks the rock in his hand at the water, sending it into the glassy water with a solid "plunk". He looks at me with a grimace. "I'm a bit rusty…"

I let out a laugh and shake my head. "Rusty? Really?"

He places a smooth, flat rock in my hand and motions toward the lake with a smirk. "If it's so easy then you do it!"

I look at the rock in my hand with a frown. "I lived in Colorado and New York… I have NO idea how to do this."

He laughs at me and sighs. "Okay, do what I do. First you want to grip the rock in between your index finger and your thumb, with the bottom of the rock resting against your middle finger. If you're confused as to which finger is your middle finger, it's the one you use to flip me off all the time."

I flip him off, which earns a laugh and a nod from him. "Yes, that one right there. Okay, now bring your arm back and… No, back like you're about to throw a disc, not a ball. That's better. Now bring your hand forward and release the rock while snapping your wrist."

I throw the rock exactly as he instructed but the rock doesn't skip. Instead it lands in the water with a "plunk" similar to James'. I watch the ripples travel outward, disrupting the peaceful surface of the water then look at James with a smirk. "You are a _terrible_ teacher…"

He puts his hand on his chest and fakes offense. "That was rude!" He takes his scarf off and wraps it around a tree branch. He looks at me with a devious glint in his eye, then in a single motion he scoops me up over his shoulder and runs into the water muttering low profanities as the icy water soaks through his clothes. He lifts me off his shoulder and hurls me into the pristine water.

I flail my arms and legs around as my body sails through the air and a small squeal escapes my lips as my body falls into the freezing water. My body tenses up as the cold water surrounds my entire body. I flap my arms and kick my legs rapidly, trying to propel myself up out of the water. As soon as my head breaks the surface, I spit out the water in my mouth and yell "JAMES! YOU P-PRAT! THIS W-W-WATER IS FR-FREEZING!"

I splash my way back to the edge of the shallow part of the lake before a laughing James comes to help me. He extends his hand down to me to help me out of the water and says between laughs, "You look like a wet rat!"

"A w-wet r-rat huh?" I grab his hand and yank him into the freezing water.

He comes spluttering up out of the water with wide eyes. "H-Holy shit!"

I do the best I can to still my chattering teeth so I can smirk at him. "W-Who's the wet rat n-now J-Jamie?"

James and I swim over to the shallow part of the lake and clamber out of the water as fast as we can. He runs over to his scarf and waves his wand at it, turning it into a large blanket. He wraps it around himself and sits down as he smirks at me. "I _w-was_ going to give t-this to you… Before y-you pulled me into the l-lake…"

I glare at him and flip him off. "I'm f-f-f-fine…."

He rolls his eyes and opens the blanket. "C-c-come on… G-get in here…"

I cross my arms and look out at the lake, but my resolve fades with the next bout of shivers that pass through my body. I glance over at James again and then sprint into the blanket. James lets out a chuckle and wraps the blanket around me. "You're lucky I'm n-nice…"

I look at him skeptically. "N-nice? Nice w-wouldn't have th-thrown me into the l-l-lake!"

"Nice w-wouldn't have c-called me a terrible teacher!"

I let out a laugh. "I n-never claimed t-to be nice…"

He chuckles and nods his head. "Y-you've got a point there. I'm a-actually just scared Eli w-would kill me if you g-got sick…"

I laugh again and smirk. "A-As you sh-should be!"

Just then, we hear from behind us "Well don't you two look cozy!"

We turn around and see Landen standing behind us glaring. I roll my eyes and say, "W-We asked if you w-wanted to c-come with us…"

He nods. "Mhm, right… Okay, well I came to tell you that Eli's up. But obviously you're a bit too preoccupied to care."

I grip James' shirt tightly and narrow my eyes slightly. "D-Don't be an a-ass, you self-rig-"

James cuts me off and nods to Landen. "Thank y-you for letting us know. We'll be back at the house o-once we've d-d-dried off."

Landen shoots one more glare at James then turns and walks away silently. I roll my eyes again and turn to James. "C-can we head back now?"

He nods with a smile and we get up. I pull the blanket off me and let one last large shiver convulse through my body before I straighten up. James and I start back up the hill again but get interrupted by a high pitched whimpering sound. I look at James curiously and then follow the noise with James close behind, his wand drawn just in case. We get closer to the noise and see a small, wet black puppy, lying on the ground shivering. I grab the blanket from James and kneel down. "Jamie, we have to bring him back with us."

He nods and kneels down next to me. "Okay."

I reach out toward the puppy with the blanket, causing it to cower away from me slightly. James croons soothing words at it, which seems to calm the puppy a bit. I wrap the blanket around the dog and pick it up. James and stand back up and continue back toward the house. As we walk, I rub the blanket quickly to try and warm the dog and stop its shivering.

We walk into the house and immediately find Lily. She sees the blanket in my hands and gives me a questioning look. That look changes into a grin, however, when the blanket lets out a small yip. Lily runs around the corner yelling "Dad! Al! We have a new family member!"

Harry and Al are briskly drug around the corner by Lily, who still has a large grin on her face. Ginny, Hermione and Ron follow them around the corner with puzzled looks on their faces. I set the puppy down and take the blanket off of it. Lily picks the puppy up and shows it to the adults and Al behind her. "See? Can we keep him?"

Harry takes the puppy from her and looks for identification of some kind. "It doesn't look like he belongs to anyone, so I don't see why we can't keep him."

Lily squeals and grabs the puppy again. "I think we should name him Toto!"

Al grimaces at her name choice. "I think we should name him Fluffy."

James shakes his head with a smirk. "I like the name Padfoot."

Everyone's heads whip toward James and Harry nods at James with a warm smile. "I think the name Padfoot is brilliant." Everyone but Lily nods their agreement.

Hermione looks at the puppy again and sighs. "Where did you find him? Why is he all wet?"

I shrug. "We were on our way back from the lake when we found him in the grass all wet. I don't know where he came from…"

Grandma Weasley comes down the stairs and gasps. "Why are you two all wet! You're going to get sick! Get upstairs and change this instant!" She pushes us up the stairs and into our rooms, but not before James can flash me a smirk.

I shut the door to my room and find my purple bag sitting on the bed. I dig through it and pull out some clothes. I quickly change into my dry outfit, savoring the new warmth, and pull my long hair up into a messy ponytail. I run out of my room and back downstairs. I find Grandma Weasley preparing some food in the kitchen, so I walk in and clear my throat. "So Eli's okay?"

She nods with a soft smile. "Yes, dear. You can go see him if you'd like."

I shake my head. "Not until Bri has seen him."

She nods again and goes back to preparing food. "She said she wouldn't see him without you. She is waiting by his door for you."

I turn around and run back up the stairs, only to turn _back_ around and poke my head around the corner into the kitchen. "Thank you for taking care of him."

She nods at me with a smile, then waves me away. I grin at her then sprint up the stairs to the third floor. I run unto James along the way and pull him up the stairs with me. We get to the top of the stairs and see Brittney and Freddie are sitting outside one of the rooms talking. When I get closer, Brittney looks at me with a smirk. "Took you long enough you prat!" She then looks at Freddie and whispers, "Did I use it right?"

He nods with a grin. "You used it brilliantly."

I let out a sigh. "You're not mad at me?"

She giggles and nods. "For being absolutely late? Completely!"

I roll my eyes and shake my head. "You know how I am with time… But you're not mad at me about Eli?"

She shakes her head and chuckles. "Eli's an idiot. That's not your fault!"

James nudges me with his elbow and smirks at me. "I told you…"

I roll my eyes again and gesture towards the door. "Can we go in now, Bri?"

She gets up off the floor and opens the door. "After you dear sister!"

I nod my thanks and grin. "Thank you dear sister!"

We get into the room and Eli smirks at us. "Well if it isn't my favorite sister! And Bri too!"

Brittney rolls her eyes and sits on the end of his bed. "Obviously he's fine."

I grin at him and let out a laugh. "I'm glad you're alright."

He rubs his chest and winces. "Yea, I'm alright… Although I do have this terrible bruise on my chest… I wonder where I could have gotten that?"

I grimace at him and chuckle lightly. "Sorry… I thought you were dead! I think I deserve _some _leeway!"

He laughs and nods. "I guess… Hey, where's everybody else?"

Brittney grins and seizes the opportunity to insult Eli again. "We were the only ones who wanted to see you, and even then we had to be forced in here."

Eli groans. "You're a rotten sister, you know that?"

I laugh and shake my head. "She's not a terrible sister! She just lacks the ability to vocalize anything other than sarcasm! She really meant to say that she's glad you're alright and that she loves you."

Eli laughs loudly and makes a heart with his fingers to Brittney as she flips me off. "I wuv you too Bri."

She rolls her eyes and gets off the bed. "As fun as this is, I'm going to leave."

I remember the puppy and gasp. "Oh! Bri! I brought something back from the lake that I think you might enjoy."

She smirks at me. "You mean other than a funky smell?"

I roll my eyes and flip her off. "Get out of here you prat!"

She flips me off and walks out of the room. A few minutes later the door opens again and James pokes his head in. "Is it alright if I come in?"

Eli nods and waves him in. James comes in and takes a seat on the end of Eli's bed. "How are you feeling?"

Eli grimaces and glances at me. "Well, my chest hurts, but other than that I'm fine."

I roll my eyes at him and jump onto his bed, taking a seat on his chest. He winces away dramatically and groans loudly. "Ariana Elizabeth Brighton, get off my chest!"

I smirk at him and shake my head. "Elijah Ryan Franklyn, are you going to stop complaining about your chest?"

He nods vigorously as he pushes me off of him. James rolls his eyes at us and clears his throat. "Anyways! What exactly happened to you?"

Eli taps his chin and sighs. "Well, I was stupefied and Ariana punch-"

"ELI! What did we JUST agree on?"

He puts his hands up defensively and grins. "Sorry, sorry… Honestly, I'm not really sure what happened. I mean, I remember helping Al find your sister Lily then him sending me off to go help everyone else. I also remember helping Landen and his dad with a couple of Death Eater's and that's it."

Grandma Weasley pokes her head into the room and smiles. "Eli, I brought you some lunch. Are you hungry?"

I roll my eyes and smirk at him. "Is he awake?"

He flips me off and says, "Yes Mrs. Weasley."

She walks in and sets the food down onto the bed. He inhales deeply and grins. "It smells delicious, thank you."

She looks at me and James firmly. "Out so he can eat in peace."

Eli smirks at us. "Yea, out so I can eat in peace."

James and I roll our eyes and leave the room. Once we are out of the room, I look at James and sigh. "He's going to milk this for all it's worth…"

He lets out a laugh and nods. "That's alright, Grandma will too."

"It sounds like their perfect for each other!"

We laugh at the thought and join Freddie and Brittney in her room next to Eli's. As soon as we walk in Brittney asks, "So what is this Christmas party Al was talking about?"

I look at James and sigh. "You tell her about it… I'm going to go find Al and Landed and bring them up here."

He nods and launches into explaining the party as I walk out of the room. I take the stairs two at a time and get to the bottom floor quickly. I walk into the living room and find Harry and Ron talking on the couch while Lily sits on the floor and plays with the puppy. I try to sneak away but Harry catches sight of me. "Ariana, may we talk to you for a moment?"

I close my eyes and let out a heavy sigh. "Yes, of course." I turn around and walk to the couch. Ron gets up and exits the room, leaving a free space for me to sit. I take a seat and internally groan. I had been dreading this conversation since after the fight outside. "What would you like to talk about?"

He asks Lily to leave the room and then asks his questions. "What happened in America?"

"Um… I started a forest fire that destroyed loads of houses, made James, Freddie and I wanted criminals… Oh! And I found out that Caledon is controlling the President with the Imperius curse and he's not targeting who we think he's targeting… That's about it." I get up off the couch to leave but he holds up his hand to stop me. He stays quiet for a moment, probably trying to process what I just said.

He finally breaks the silence. "Why are you three wanted criminals?"

I sigh and get comfortable on the couch. "The police think I murdered my father. How daft is that? We ended up paying a visit to my old house and one of my neighbors recognized me. She called the police to report that she had found a missing person but, when I got in the police car, the officer started questioning me about the fire and my father's death. Then when I got out of the squad car, another cop came out and told me that I was under arrest for murdering my father. Plus, as I said before, I accidentally started a forest fire that destroyed loads of homes which counts as arson."

"Okay… And how do you know Caledon has the President under the Imperius curse?"

I tap my fingers on my knees as I tell him about the TV. "Well… Freddie, James, Eli, Brittney and I were watching TV when the President came on and began giving a speech, which is when I saw Caledon standing in the background. We paused the TV and Freddie noticed the President's eyes were all cloudy, which we later realized was because we is under the Imperius curse."

"Finally, how do you know that he's not targeting American muggles?"

I sigh once again and make a funny face as I try to figure out how to tell him about my dream. "Um… I had a dream about it. Well, sort of a dream. I mean, I was definitely asleep but when I blew up the TV in my dream I blew up the real TV. Plus I fell asleep in my bed but woke up in the living room. In my 'dream', Caledon told me that he wasn't targeting who we think he is and that we weren't going to be able to get anywhere near the President while he was under Caledon's control… So we left America and came here, which was obviously a good decision. Why where Death Eater's here attacking you lot?"

Harry shakes his head. "I'm honestly not sure… You kids showed up at the perfect time though. Who are Brittney and Eli?"

"Bri and Eli are my second family from America. I've known them since birth and I went to Salem with both of them. Eli is the prat upstairs and his sister, Bri, is the one who's attached to Freddie."

He nods his head and gets up off the couch. "You're free to go but, if you have any more 'dreams' like the one you had in America, let me know immediately."

I get up from the couch and nod. I walk into the kitchen and find Landen and Al talking at the table. "Hey you two, the rest of us are upstairs talking about the upcoming party if you want to join us."

Landen gives me an odd look and says, "Do you really think it's still going to happen with what just happened?"

Al nods with a smirk. "Of course! Grandma has never canceled a Christmas party and I don't think she plans on starting now." He gets up from the table and walks to the stairs. "You two coming or not?"

Landen gets up from the table and walks to the stairs, motioning for Al to lead the way. I quickly grab a bowl of fruit and rush back up the stairs to Brittney's room. As soon as I get in I hear Landen loudly yell, "THE PARTY'S TOMORROW?"

I chuckle as I take a seat on the bed next to Brittney and Freddie. "Yea, Lan. Tomorrow's Christmas Eve and the party is _always_ on Christmas Eve."

James scoffs as he moves next to me and steals a strawberry from my bowl. "_Please_ Ari… You act like you've been to every party. You've only been to _one_ party you git."

I stick my tongue out at him and steal my strawberry back. "You're such a prat…"

Brittney sighs loudly and frowns. "I didn't bring anything to wear!"

"Don't worry about it Bri, I have something you can wear."

She grins at me then sighs dramatically again. "Now if only I had someone to ask me…"

Al laughs loudly and rolls his eyes. "I wonder who she could mean…"

James nudges me with a smirk. "She's the essence of subtle..."

Freddie blushes and opens his mouth to say something, but I cut him off before he can say anything. "Bri! How dare you put James on the spot like that!"

James rolls his eyes and grins. "Yes of course. How _could _I be so stupid? Brittney, would you care to go to the Christmas party as my date?"

Freddie clears his throat and sighs. "Unless you'd like to go with me?"

Brittney grins widely and nods her head vigorously. "Well Freddie! You've completely taken me by surprise, but of course I'll go with you!" She looks at James and says, "Maybe next year Jamie."

James shrugs his shoulders and frowns dramatically. "I guess I can survive until then, but it might be hard."

Landen clears his throat loudly and faces Al. "Al, who are you going to the party with?"

Al shrugs his shoulders. "I didn't plan on coming home for the holiday so I'm not going with anyone."

I shake my head at him with a smirk. "Don't worry about it Al, I'm going solo this year too. I went with a date last year and it was awful. I only danced with him once and it was only for a moment."

Al and Freddie burst into laughter as James looks at me with his mouth agape. I place an apple chunk in his open mouth and look at Brittney and Landen to explain. "Jamie here was my date last year."

Brittney and Landen nod their understanding while James finishes the apple chunk in his mouth. "In my defense, I would have danced with her more if we hadn't decided to play strip poker with everyone else."

Brittney bursts into a fit of laughter this time. "Ari? YOU played poker? But you suck at poker!"

I flip her off with a grin while James, Freddie and Al begin laughing again. Landen gives me a confused look and I explain once again. "I was the first one in my knickers when we played… I'm dreadful at poker, as witnessed by everyone from that night."

We all spend the rest of the day in Brittney's room reminiscing about last year's party and talking about what we should do at this year's party.

**So I decided to give yall a more cheerful chapter since the past couple have been kinda dramatic. Let me know what your thoughts about the chapter! :)**

**On a side note, I got the puppy idea from something I saw on pinterest. I saw it yesterday and thought it was adorable so I decided to add it to the story.**

**Thanks to everyone who added this story to their alerts, to everyone who took time out of their day to leave me a review, and to everyone else who supports this story. I absolutely love yall! :)**

**I will post chapter 16 as soon as I have it typed up.**

**Thanks yall! :)**

**-Tx**

**I will post the next chapter as soon as I get it typed up.**


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 16**

**Ari's POV**

"Ariana, dear, can you wrap some lights and garland along the railings please?"

"Yes Grandma Weasley." I wave my wand and wrap a string of bright Christmas lights mixed with dark green garland all the way up the railings. "Anything else?"

She shakes her head as she puts some baubles up around the lowest floor. "No that's alright dear, you've done enough. Thank you for your help. Now go get ready!"

I grin and give her a hug. "Thanks! If you need anything else just give me a call!" I run upstairs and rush into my room. I look at the dresses I picked out for Brittney and me last night with a huge smile. I had apparated to Grimmauld place with Ginny last night to get our dresses from my closet back home. One dress is a rich green, strapless dress with a sweetheart neckline, along with white heels and pearl jewelry. The other dress is a deep red, strapless dress with a sweetheart neckline, along with gold heels and gold jewelry. Both dresses are the exact same, just different colors. While I had an idea as to who would get what dress, I made sure that I could let Brittney choose her dress and either would still flatter her.

I picked a green dress and a red dress for two main reasons. One: Because Brittney is rather pale and the green will look good against her skin while red will be more dramatic, and two: Green is one of Freddie's favorite colors while red and gold are the Gryffindor colors. So, with either dress, she is going to be a knockout.

I was going to get her a blue dress since Freddie absolutely loves the color blue and it would have made her eyes stand out, but I remembered that Bella wore a blue dress to the party last year and I want to keep his mind as far away from Bella as possible. It hasn't even been a year yet since she died so I'm a bit nervous with how he's going to be tonight, which is why yesterday, I had tried to divert Brittney's obvious pressure on him to ask her with a joke. I wanted him to ask her because he wanted to, not because he felt like he had to or he was pressured.

I hide the dresses in my closet and run out of my room, making sure to shut my bedroom door before I rush up to Brittney's room. I fling open the door and grin at Brittney, who is lying on her bed reading my _Hogwarts: A History_ book. "Bri! Let's go get ready!"

She shuts my book and jumps off her bed with a grin. We run down the stairs and race into my room. I shut my door and walk over to my closet. "Are you ready to pick your dress?"

She nods her head energetically and sits on my bed. I walk into my closet and pull out the two dresses, slowly walking out and revealing them to her. As soon as she sees them she smiles. "I want the green one."

I nod and hand her the green dress and its accessories. "How do you want to do your hair?"

She shrugs her shoulders as she continues to eyeball the dress. I tap my chin thoughtfully as I run through all the hairstyles I am able to do. "Hmm… How about we put it into a braided bun?"

She nods her head and sits down on the floor in front of my bed. She points to her head and says, "Work your magic! No pun intended…"

I shake my head and chuckle lightly. I brush through her thick hair as she continues to read my book. "So Freddie, huh?"

**James' POV**

"Teddy have you seen my gold tie?" I rummage through my bag again and let out a frustrated grunt.

Teddy walks in and tosses a gold tie to me. "Here, you can borrow mine."

I pick the tie up off the ground and breathe a sigh of relief. "Thanks Ted. Hey, is Victoire coming?"

He pokes his head into my room and nods. "Well, yea. She is my girlfriend James…"

I shrug my shoulders as I look in the mirror and tie my tie around my neck. "Alright well I just wanted to ask…"

I smooth my deep red shirt and take a calming breath. I'm not sure why I'm so nervous about this party but, for whatever reason, I am. I pull on my black pants and button them up. I pull my black belt through the loops on my pants and fasten it shut. I slip my feet into my black loafers and take a seat on my bed as I continue to look at myself in the mirror. I run my fingers through my messy black hair and groan. "What the hell am I going to do with my hair?"

After multiple attempts to brush my hair down, I finally give up and decide to leave it as is. I roll my sleeves up to my forearms and button them securely in place. I hear the front door open and mum and grandma laugh loudly. _A guest must have just arrived…_

I take another calming breath and sit on my bed. "Hey Ted, who just got here?"

"It's just Landen and his dad. It looks like Luna, Rolf, Lorcan and Lysander are coming up the path though." He pokes his head in my room again and frowns. "What's wrong with you?"

I throw my hands up in the air and groan. "I don't bloody know! I'm nervous and I don't know why!"

He walks in and sits on the bed next to me. "There's no reason to try and impress her… She's already daft enough to be friends with you, and she went out with you before. Things will work out in the end, I promise."

I nod to him and sigh. "Thanks Teddy…"

He pats me on the shoulder and smiles at me before leaving my room. I take one last calming breath and exit my room too. I slowly walk down the stairs and into the living room. Al, Lorcan, Lysander and Landen are all sitting on the couch already so I take a seat in one of the many chairs that grandma set up around the house. Landen is wearing a blue shirt with a black tie, black pants and black loafers. Al is in a white shirt with an emerald tie, black pants and black loafers. Lorcan and Lysander are wearing blue shirts with white ties, black pants and white loafers.

The front door opens again and Uncle George, Aunt Angelina, Roxanne and Freddie all walk in. Freddie, who is wearing a black shirt with a green tie and black pants and loafers, takes a seat in the chair next to me. He is tapping his toes on the ground nervously and making noises with his mouth so I lean over and smirk as I whisper "What are you so nervous about, mate?"

He looks at me and sighs. "I haven't been out with anyone since Bella and I'm bloody nervous! Is it obvious?"

I shake my head with a small smile and he breathes a sigh of relief. I turn and start talking to Al when I hear Freddie say "Bloody hell…"

I look over to him with a grin; sure his nerves have gotten the best of him, and see his eyes are locked on the stairs. I follow his gaze and my grin fades as my mouth drops open. Standing at the bottom of the stairs is a tall, skinny, bloody gorgeous brown-haired girl in a green dress that almost matches Freddie's tie perfectly. The dress falls just below her knees and her hair is set in a bun at the base of her head just below her ear. She has on a large pearl necklace, big pearl earrings, and white high heels. I nudge Freddie with my elbow and say, "Bloody hell is right…"

**Ari's POV**

"Ari, are you sure that I should go down first?"

I take in her nervous expression and nod. "Bri, I want you to be the first thing those boys see."

She nods at me nervously and takes a deep breath. She takes a step down and turns back to me. "By the way, I love your new hair color. It really is great."

I flash her a smile and then motion for her to continue down the stairs. I watch her walk down the remainder of the stairs and I smile when I hear Freddie say, "Bloody hell…"

My smile grows as the living room grows silent. Brittney glances up at me apprehensively and I give her two thumbs up. She nods to me then turns back to the living room and strikes a corny pose. I clasp my hands over my mouth to stifle my laughter as Eli steps up next to me. He is wearing an outfit he borrowed from Teddy: a black shirt, a white tie, black pants and white loafers. His light brown hair is combed neatly to the side and he's managed to cover the small cut that sits next to his eye. He catches sight of his sister before she walks to the living room and grins. "You are _good_."

I shake my head. "That's wasn't me. I just picked the outfit. That right there, all that gorgeousness, is Bri. While normally awkward, get her into a party and she becomes someone totally new."

He touches my hair and smirks. "Speaking of someone totally new, brown? You guys really do look like sisters now."

My hair is done the exact same way as Brittney's. It is pulled into a bun with a single small braid running through it, set at the bottom of my head just below my ear. And now, instead of my normal strawberry blonde hair color, my hair is a dark brown thanks to a temporary color change spell.

I shrug my shoulders and frown. "I was tired of being blonde… Figured I could switch it up, just for this week. Does it look bad?"

He shakes his head and plants a kiss on the top of my head. "You look gorgeous sis." He extends his arm out and gives me a smile. "Are you ready?"

I link my arm through his and nod. "I guess…"

He frowns. "What is there to be nervous about?"

I sigh and shake my head. "I know I'm just being paranoid, but what if something happens tonight? Like another attack?"

He squeezes my arm reassuringly and smiles. "Well I guess we will deal with it then. Until then, try to enjoy yourself."

I purse my lips and nod. We descend the stairs slowly, my grip on his arm getting tighter with each step. We get to the bottom stair and Eli leans over. "If you squeeze my arm any tighter, you're going to break it off. Are you going to be alright?"

I loosen my grip on his arm and nod. "Yea, sorry. I'll be fine... I just need some air."

Much to my relief, everyone in the living room is so occupied with Brittney that they don't even notice me and Eli come down the stairs. He and I are almost through the living room and safely outside when Al sees us. "Eli! Don't you look nice! Who's your date there?"

I close my eyes and silently curse myself for not making us walk faster. I open my eyes and we turn around. Al's eyes widen as he realizes that he's looking at me. "Ariana?"

Landen looks away from Brittney at the mention of my name. "Holy sh-"

James cuts Landen off before he can finish his shock filled profanity. "I didn't recognize you with brown hair… I like it."

I nod sheepishly as I feel the heat rising in my face and I begin to sweat. "Oh, um… thanks. You know, we were just heading outside so I'll catch up with you lot later."

I wave to them and quickly make my way outside, managing to get out of the house just in time. As soon as the crisp air hits my face, I double over and vomit against the side of the house. Eli looks at me with a worried expression as he pulls out his wand and cleans the puke off of the house. "Ari, are you sure you're going to be alright?"

I wipe my mouth with the back of my hand and grimace. "Ugh… I'll be fine. I just need to go brush my teeth. My mouth tastes repulsive…"

Eli nods and helps sneak me back into the house and up to my room. He sits on my bed as I aggressively brush the vomit taste out of my mouth. I spit out the toothpaste and scowl. "Alright, I think I'm okay now."

He shakes his head. "WHY are you so nervous about this?"

I pull him up off my bed and sigh. "Because if there were ever a perfect time to attack us, it would be now… Everyone is here and there is definitely going to be drinking, so everyone will be extra vulnerable…"

He laughs as we walk down the stairs. "I'll make you a deal. How about tonight, YOU get to be the kid and I'LL be a hundred year old deadbeat and do all the worrying. That way, it's still getting done but you get to have a good time."

I let out a chuckle and pull him into a hug as we get to the bottom floor. "That's really kind of you to call me a hundred year old deadbeat, but I don't think that's how this works. Now go have some fun. I will be fine, I promise."

He looks at me for a moment then sighs. "Alright, fine. But if you get sick again, come find me okay?"

I roll my eyes and nod with a grin. "Fine! Now would you get out of here already! Better yet… Hold on." I had just seen Spencer Darkbloom, a chaser for the Gryffindor quidditch team, walk into the kitchen. I grab Eli's arm and drag him behind me as I look for Spencer. I find her in the kitchen talking to her brother and fellow teammate, Alec. "Hey Spence, this is my brother Eli. He's-"

Eli clasps one of his hands over my mouth and extends his other hand out to her. "Hi, I'm Eli. Would you like to go dance?"

She lets out a light laugh and nods. "Yea sure."

He releases my mouth and holds out his arm to Spencer. She links her arm through his and they leave the kitchen, but not before Eli can turn around and wink at me.

I roll my eyes and turn to Alec. "Sorry to have interrupted your conversation like that Alec."

He looks at me and then turns away, only to turn back around again with wide eyes. "Ariana?"

I nod with a smile. "The one and only…"

"Damn, I didn't recognize you with brown hair!" He pulls me into a quick hug then releases me. "What have you been up to this winter holiday?"

I shrug my shoulders and lie. "Nothing much. I went to visit my brother and sister but that's about it. How about you?"

He flexes his arm and wiggles his eyebrows with a grin. "I've been working out."

I roll my eyes and laugh. "Oh Merlin…"

He looks around with a frown. "Where's your date?"

"I didn't come with one. How about you? Are you here with Ashlynn again or did you finally decide to ask Rose?"

He nods with a laugh. "Wouldn't you know it, I _finally _work up the nerve to ask Rose and she ends up getting sick the night before!"

I hold my arm out to him with a grin. "Well that's no good! I guess we better get our dateless asses outside and find some people to dance with then!"

He laughs again and grabs my arm, wrapping it around his. We walk outside while he tells me about his classes.

We get into the enormous white tent and join the large crowd of people inside. I feel my stomach get a little uneasy at the sight of so many people but I take a deep breath and power through it. A rather fast song is playing overhead, so Alec spins me around and pulls me into a dance. We bounce and spin around sporadically, completely ignoring the beat of the music, and laughing the entire time.

The music changes and Alec and I stop our "dancing" but continue our laughing. "That was so much fun Alec!"

He nods his agreement and grins. "I missed this Ariana. The Ariana who was with us on the quidditch team this term was so serious…"

I grimace at his honesty and the few memories I have from quidditch season. "I know… I'm sorry… To be honest, I don't even really remember the season that well. It was all a rather stressful blur."

He smiles at me and pats me on the shoulder. "Hey, I'm just glad you're back."

I nod bashfully as we walk to an empty table and take a seat. I look around the tent and see Eli dancing with a laughing Spencer. Eli catches me looking at him and smirks. I grin at him and wiggle my eyebrows, to which he responds with a wink.

A few feet away from them, sitting at a secluded table, are Freddie and Brittney. They are just sitting next to each other, talking. James takes a seat next to me. "What are you looking at so intently?"

I nod my head toward Freddie and Brittney and smile. "They really are adorable, aren't they?"

He chuckles at me and sighs. "You are such a girl…"

I roll my eyes and smack him on the arm. "And _you _are such a prat!" I look at his clothes and laugh. "But you're a prat with a good sense of style. How is it we managed to match?"

He smirks and nods to my hair. "Even our hair matches…"

I touch my hair and laugh. "Yea I guess you're right."

"So why'd you change it?"

I shrug my shoulders. "I just wanted to change things up I guess…"

He nods. "I didn't mean to offend you when I brought it up earlier."

I shake my head with a laugh. "You didn't. I was just feeling a bit ill is all…"

He looks at me with a raised eyebrow and a worried expression. "But you're alright now, right?"

I nod warily, earning a grin from James. "Good…" He grabs my hand and pulls me to the floor for a dance. I let out a laugh as he spins me around in a circle and almost runs me into someone.

I manage to yell out a quick "Sorry!" before James twirls me around again. I laugh again as I narrowly dodge running into Teddy and Victoire, who are dancing as well. "Sorry Ted!" I cling to James tightly and laugh. "Jamie, _please _no more spinning! We're going to injure someone!"

He rolls his eyes with a smirk. "Big baby…"

I laugh and smack him in the chest with one hand as I continue to grasp his shoulder tightly with the other. "I almost ran into three people! I actually feared for my well-being and the well-being of others!"

He rolls his eyes again and pries my hand off of his shoulder, spinning me around calmly. "That better?"

I nod my head with a smirk. "Much better."

He chuckles and places my hands back on his shoulders then weaves his arms around my low back. "Yes, it is."

Someone clears their throat loudly. I look in the direction of the noise and sigh. "Yes Eli?"

"Freddie says we are starting the game early this year. Are you two coming?"

I nod. "I am. Jamie, are you?"

He releases my waist and nods. Eli smirks at me then walks away. I turn to James with a laugh and curtsey. "Thank you for a lovely, and slightly dangerous, dance Jamie."

James laughs and bows. "My pleasure Ariana. We will have to do it again sometime." He holds out his arm to me. "Would you care to join me on my way back to the house?"

I loop my arm through his and smile. "Thank you kind sir! We will have to make a quick detour though. I want to go invite Alec to come play with us."

He points to the table we had been sitting at. "Looks like Al's already doing that."

"Oh… Well then, to the Burrow!"

I pull off my heels and we skip arm in arm to the Burrow. Once we get inside I drop my heels off by the stairs and release James' arm, pushing off his chest and sprinting up the stairs. "See you at the top, loser!"

I hear him laugh as he kicks his shoes off and run up the stairs behind me. "Oh no you don't!"

I can hear him getting close so I wave my wand at the set of stairs he's on and turn them into a slide. I stop for a moment and watch him slip down the slide. He glares up at me so I stick my tongue out at him and wiggle my fingers in a wave then start running again. I suddenly hear a loud "POP" behind me followed by "You didn't think you were the only one who could apparate, did you?"

He grabs my wrist and spins me around to look at him while grabbing my other wrist. "Are you going to cheat _every_ year?"

I grin at him. "Are you going to take it easy on me _every _year?"

He laughs and releases my wrists. "I _never _take it easy, _especially_ on _you_."

I put my hands on his shoulders, bring my lips right next to his ear and whisper with a smirk, "Good. I wouldn't want it any other way." At that moment I kick his legs out from under him and push on his shoulders, forcing him to the ground. I wiggle my eyebrows at him with a grin and jump over him, propelling myself up the last flight of stairs in front of me. I can hear him get up off the floor and clamber up the stairs behind me. I let out a giggle and jump up the last two stairs. I turn around and cross my arms to wait for James, but only for a moment because he comes up the stairs fairly quickly. I flash him a smug grin. "Took you long enough to get up here! Merlin! Didn't Ginny teach you that you should never keep a lady waiting?"

He rolls his eyes with a smirk. "Good thing I only kept _you_ waiting then, huh?"

I crack a smile as I smack him on the arm. "Prat…"

"Cheater…"

I flip him off with a grin and take a seat between Eli and Freddie. James plops down between Al and Brittney and leans back against the couch behind him. Freddie tosses him a firewhiskey, which James catches with a grin. "So what game are we going to play?"

Freddie grins at us. "I was thinking we would play a little bit of truth or dare. What do you lot think?"

Everyone in the circle looks around at the others before nodding our approval. Landen comes out of the bathroom and grins. "Did they agree?"

Freddie nods and hands Landen a firewhiskey. He accepts it graciously as he takes a seat between Al and Roxanne. Al reaches across the circle and grabs two bottles of firewhiskey from Freddie, giving one of the bottles to Roxanne. Eli grabs a bottle and inspects it carefully. "What is this?"

I pop the lid off for him and take a sip before giving it back to him. "It's firewhiskey. Just try it… I think you'll enjoy it."

He takes a sip of it and winces as the liquid runs down his throat. "Is it supposed to feel that warm?"

I nod with a laugh and steal another sip from his bottle. He frowns at me as he snatches the bottle out of my hands. "Why don't you get your own?"

"Because the last time I had firewhiskey, I was pissed after only two."

Landen chokes on the drink in his mouth as he recalls the event. He takes a moment to recover and when he does, he looks to Freddie. "How about we get started?"

Freddie places an empty bottle in the middle of our staggered circle and waves his wand at it. "Okay, I just placed a spell on the bottle that will let us know when you're lying. Rules of the game: we can't involve the adults at all, nothing we say can be repeated outside this circle, no repeating truths to the same person, and each person gets one pass. Once you've used that up, if you want to pass again you have to remove an article of clothing. Got it?"

I roll my eyes with a laugh. "What's with you and making us strip?"

He rolls his eyes with a sigh. "Fine, no stripping. But that means no free passes at all." He claps his hands together with a grin. "Good! Who wants to start?"

Landen grabs the bottle with a smirk. "I'll go first." He gives it a spin and waits for it to stop. It lands on Brittney. "Truth or dare?"

She looks around the circle and smirks. "I don't think you all know me well enough yet… Truth."

Landen grins and taps his chin thoughtfully. "Truth huh? Hm… What's the craziest thing you've ever done?"

Brittney laughs and shakes her head. "Oh gosh… there have been so many! Let's see… Oh! The craziest thing I've ever done was streak through a Quodpot semifinals game."

Eli grimaces loudly. "Oh gross! That was YOU?"

I let out a laugh and point at her. "I remember that! I was going to go with you but chickened out at the last minute!"

She laughs and nods her head. "I know, you jerk! I looked like an idiot out there!" She picks up the bottle and grins. "My turn… Whose it gonna be?" She twists the bottle aggressively and watches it intently as she waits for it to stop. She gets a devilish grin on her face as she looks up to see who the bottle is pointing at. "Truth or dare?"

James looks around warily. "I don't like the way she's looking at me… Truth…"

She taps her chin for a moment and then snaps her fingers. "I've got it! Who was your first love?"

He takes a drink from his firewhiskey and frowns. "I haven't had one yet."

Suddenly his pants light on fire. His eyes widen and he jumps up. "What the hell?"

Freddie smirks at him. "You better tell the truth James…"

"Fine! Fine… It was… Ahrirhnr…"

Brittney smirks as the fire on his pants extinguishes, leaving no trace of the fire ever even happening. "What was that James?"

He throws his hands up and grunts. "It was Ariana, alright?"

I can feel the heat rising in my face so I examine the floor intently. Eli nudges me with his elbow and hands me his firewhiskey with a smirk on his face. I accept the bottle graciously and take a big drink. I hand him back his bottle and Eli says, "Alright James. It's your turn, right?"

I shoot Eli a thankful glance as James spins the bottle. We all sit in a rather awkward silence as the bottle spins around. The bottle stops on Landen and James breathes a sigh of relief. "Truth or dare?"

Landen takes a swig of his firewhiskey and looks at James bravely. "Dare."

James grins deviously. "I dare you to switch outfits with one of the girls here."

Landen points to Roxanne with a smirk. "Roxie, give me your clothes."

She groans. "Why me?"

"Well one, because you're in a long dress so I won't feel too exposed. And two, because blue really makes my eyes pop."

She gets up and steps out of her dress with a laugh. "Two very valid points. Here…"

He grabs the dress from her and quickly changes into it then hands her his clothes to change in to. Once they've both changed, Landen gives the bottle a spin. It spins for a few moments before landing on Eli. Linden grins at him. "Truth or dare?"

Eli smirks at Landen. "Dare…"

Landen laughs. "I dare you to… dye your hair green."

Eli waves his wand at his hair then it changes from a light brown to a forest green color. He spins the bottle and it lands on me. "Truth or dare, Ari?"

I take a deep breath. "Truth."

"Alright… What is your biggest fear?"

I laugh. "Frogs."

The bottom of my dress catches on fire and I mutter a few very vulgar profanities before saying "Fine, its people dying because of me."

Landen frowns at me. "Why would you lie about that?"

I shrug my shoulders. "I didn't want to be a prat and put a spoil the game." I quickly spin the bottle before anyone else can ask me any other questions. The bottle lands on Freddie. "Truth or dare, Freddie-o?"

He taps his chin. "Hm… truth."

"Okay, hm… Is it true that you and Jamie snuck into the Slytherine common room and tagged it fifth year?"

He looks at Al with wide eyes and shakes his head. "No! It's not true!"

His pants burst into flames and Al jumps up. "I KNEW IT!"

"Fine! It was us!" I pat him on the leg and smirk. He grabs the bottle and gives it a big spin. The bottle lands on Al, who looks around warily. Freddie grins at him. "Truth or dare?"

Al gulps loudly and sighs. "Um… dare?"

Freddie nods and his grin turns shrewd. "Oh Al… Wrong decision. I dare you to jump into the lake. Naked."

Al's eyes widen and then he narrows his eyes, looking more determined. He gets up off the floor and runs down the stairs. We all get up and rush over to the small, circular window to watch. For a few minutes, we don't see anything. Then suddenly we see a figure running toward the lake, articles of clothing flying every which way. Al launches himself at the lake and curls into a ball, creating a large splash as he lands in the water. We all clap for him and sit back down in our circle to wait for him. While we wait, Freddie decides to go get more firewhiskey and I decide to go get some food. We both get up at the same time and walk down the stairs together.

As soon as we get far enough away from the top floor, Freddie stops me and gives me a firm look. "Did you know?"

I roll my eyes. "Did I act like I knew?"

"I didn't think so… Was he yours?"

I nod my head and sigh. He watches me intently then smirks. "You still do, don't you?"

I groan at him. "I don't want to talk about this Freddie. With everything that's going on with Caledon, I can't afford to think about it right now."

"Wouldn't that make this the _perfect _time to think about this?" He grabs a handful of bottles and hands me one. "I'm not going to just drop this… You two need to talk about it."

I take the bottle from him but ignore what he's saying. Instead, I walk into the kitchen and grab a bowl of fruit. I'm pretty sure the only reason Grandma Weasley makes this is because of me and James, because nobody else really eats it. I sigh and grab another bowl for James and walk back up the stairs.

Once I get upstairs, I hand James his bowl of fruit and sit back down. Freddie claps his hands and looks around. "Now that everybody is back, let's get started again. Al, it's your turn to spin the bottle."

Al gives the bottle a twist and it lands on Roxanne. "Truth or dare, Roxie?"

"Truth."

He sighs as he thinks about his question. "Is it true that you made out with Peter Rallington in a broom closet in the arena last year?"

She looks at the bottle and frowns. "Ugh… yes…"

"WHAT?"

She glares at Freddie. "Oh calm down you tosser. It was _one _time…" With that, she spins the bottle. It lands on Freddie and she grins evilly. "So, dear brother, truth or dare?"

He glowers at her. "Truth…"

She taps her chin thoughtfully. "What do you really think of Ariana's new hair color?"

He grins at her. "You're a ninny who wasted a perfectly good opportunity. How are we even related? To answer your question, I love Ari's new hair color."

He spins the bottle and it lands on me. He gets a suspicious glint in his eye as he asks, "Truth or dare Ariana?"

I sigh. "Truth."

He nods with a devious grin. "Alright then. Are you still in love with James?"

I narrow my eyes at him. "Fine. I choose dare…"

He smirks at me. "Perfect. I dare you to kiss a frog…"

My eyes widen and I shake my head. "You git… You KNOW I'm terrified of frogs!"

Eli lets out a loud laugh before he clasps his hand over his mouth. Once he's calmed down he looks at me with a smirk. "Still? You're STILL afraid of frogs?"

I nod frantically. "Yes Eli! I'm STILL afraid of frogs! All because you thought it would be funny to put a load of frogs in my sleeping back when we were little! They were bloody everywhere! Literally the worst camping trip of my life… And I've been camping with Monroe so that should tell you something!"

Freddie clears his throat. "As thrilling as this all is, you still have a truth or dare to perform. You either tell us if you're still in love with James or you kiss a frog."

I glare at Freddie and make a mental note to kill him later as I get up off the floor. "I'll be right back."

**I kind of felt like I rushed through the last chapter and stuffed it full of information, so I decided to give you a nice long, detailed chapter that breaks up into two parts. I hope you enjoyed it!**

**As always, I appreciate everyone who reviewed, who added the story to their alerts and all my other lovely readers! :)**

**I am working on the next chapter now and it should be posted soon.**

**thanks yall! :)**

**-Tx**


	17. Chapter 17

**This chapter is dedicated to my lovely reader, BananaLollypop. Happy birthday! I hope you enjoy the chapter and have a great birthday! :)**

**Chapter 17**

**Ari's POV**

I tip toe down the stairs and sneak past the remaining adults, who have now retreated from the tent outside into the kitchen. It's gotten pretty late and the only people that remain are family and close friends.

I quietly pull the back door open and sneak outside. As soon as I get outside, I quit tip toeing and quickly make my way to the lake.

I step up to the water's edge and take a deep breath. "It's just a frog, Ariana. You can do this." I crouch down next to the water and listen for the sound of croaking. I faintly hear it off to my left so I get up and walk in the direction of the noise. I see a small frog resting atop a lily pad.

I slowly creep forward, my hands outstretched toward the frog, when it lunges toward me. I let out a shrill shriek and stagger away from it, falling backward onto my butt as I trip over my own foot. The frog jumps toward me again and my eyes widen as I crawl backward away from it. I slowly push myself up off the ground, my eyes never leaving the frog. It jumps at me again and I take a step back, but it doesn't stop like it did before. The frog begins to pursue me, chasing me toward the other end of the lake.

As I get to the other end of the lake, I spot another frog sitting on a lily pad next to the edge of the pristine water. As soon as I get close to it, it hops off its lily pad and jumps toward me. I emit another shriek and mutter profanities as I back away from the advancing frog.

Suddenly a third frog joins the two frogs hopping toward me, followed by a fourth and fifth frog. I let out a huff of air. "Are you bloody _kidding_ me?"

The frogs croak and hop toward me, advancing toward me quickly. I pull out my wand and shakily point it at one of the frogs as I slowly back away from them. "This is SO not worth it…"

I trip over myself again and curse loudly as I fall on my butt again. One of the frogs jumps near my head and I let out a loud scream, squeezing my eyes shut tight as another one jumped to the other side of my head and another jumped by the top of my head. I open my eyes suddenly and see the fourth frog jump next to my stomach. I glare at it and shake my head. "Don't you dare…"

It croaks once and jumps onto my stomach. I let out a wail and throw the frog off my stomach as I jump up off the ground and fling my hands around wildly as I bounce around on the balls of my feet.

Suddenly I hear laughter behind me. I recover from my fit quickly, rapidly brandishing my wand and turning to face the sources of the laughter.

**James' POV**

Freddie grins at us. "Is she downstairs yet?"

Al runs over to the railing and nods. Freddie claps his hands grins again. "Roxie, Bri? Are you two _sure_ you don't want to be a part of this? It's sure to be brilliant…"

Roxanne shakes her head. "Oh no. I would much rather just watch."

Bri points to Roxie. "Exactly. I think it will be much funnier if I watch."

Freddie shrugs his shoulders. "Suit yourselves." He turns to Eli, Al, Landen and me. "Alright you lot. You know what to do."

We all nod and wave our wands at on another. I watch as the three guys in front of me all turn into small green frogs. Brittney picks up me and Freddie while Roxanne picks up Al, Eli and Landen. Brittney whispers, "Hold on tight guys…" then she nods to Roxanne, who nods back. With that, we apparate down to the lake with a loud "POP!"

She sets us down by the water just as the back door shuts. She nods to us as she and Roxie run and hide behind a bush next to the water. Ariana walks right past them and the bush as she kneels by the water. I hop onto a lily pad and hide, watching Freddie take his place at the far end of the lake. He lets out a loud croak and Ariana gets up and walks over to him slowly. _Let the fun begin…_

**Ari's POV**

"Bri? Roxie? What the hell are you two doing out here? I almost hexed you into next week!"

They both clutch their sides as they continue to laugh. Brittney holds up her finger as she and Roxanne wave their wands at the frogs.

One by one, the five frogs slowly grow in size and change into James, Eli, Al, Landen and Freddie. I gasp at the realization and narrow my eyes at them. "You lot are a bunch of assholes!"

Freddie grins at me. "You should have seen your face! It was bloody priceless!"

Landen laughs. "You should have seen it all! You looked so girly! Flailing your hands around and squealing…"

I smirk at them. "Wait, does this mean I don't have to kiss a frog?"

Eli steps forward with a menacing smile as he pulls his hands out from behind his back. Sitting in his hands is a big, green frog. "Well, you were _dared…_"

I sigh and step toward his hands warily. The frog lets out a loud croak, causing me to step back and look around nervously. "Do I really have to?"

James sighs loudly from the back of the group of boys. "Come on now guys. We did scare the hell out of her… Let's give her a break with the dare."

Landen shrugs his shoulders. "Well, if you're too scared…"

I flip him off and step in front of Eli's still outstretched hands. I take a deep breath then quickly plant my lips on the frogs head. I only let my lips linger for a moment before reeling back in utter disgust. I splutter and wipe my hands over my mouth, making strange noises in the process. Apparently I look hilarious because everyone is doubled over with laughter.

After I feel like every nasty frog germ is gone from my mouth, and everyone has finished laughing at me, Al pats me on the shoulder with a grin. "Now that we've all had a good laugh, I think we should head up to bed."

I playfully push his hand of my shoulder and shake my head. "Let's camp out here tonight!"

Freddie gives me a skeptical look. I push out my lip and give him my best pout. "Please, Freddie-o?"

He looks at everyone else, each person saying their approval, and then sighs. "Fine… I'll go get the tents while you lot go change your clothes."

I give him a quick hug and run off to go change. I get into my room and dig through my bag, grunting when I can only find my pajama shirt. I silently thank Merlin that I decided to wear a pair of shorts under my dress. I slip off my dress and pull on my favorite red button up shirt I got from James as a "gift" last year. I pull my hair out of its bun, crazy brown curls cascading down onto my shoulders. I groan at my sporadic hair and put it into a braid. I look in the mirror again and laugh. "I'm pretty sure I wore this same outfit last year too…"

I walk out of my room and over to Landen's. I knock on his door and patiently wait for him to answer it. He opens the door and rolls his eyes. "Seriously? That's the shirt you brought? Where did you even get it?"

I let out a laugh and shake my head. "It was a gift!"

James laughs behind us. "Yea… A gift… Pretty sure you stole it from me!"

I flip him off with a grin and walk into Landen's room. He takes off his dress shirt and pulls on his pajama shirt then tosses me a pair of pajama pants. "What's up?"

I shrug my shoulders as I pull the pants on and tie the drawstrings tightly around my waist. "I guess I just feel like I haven't talked to you in forever."

He rolls his eyes. "Probably because you've only been hanging out with James since you got back from America…"

I throw a pillow at him. "You know that's not fair Lan."

"How is it not fair? I'm old news now, I get it."

I throw my hands up as I groan. "You are such a _girl_ sometimes! Landen, do you know why I was so upset when James lost his memory?"

He rolls his eyes again as he leans against the bedpost. "Because you lost your boyfriend and blah blah blah."

"Well yes, I did end up losing my boyfriend, but I also lost my best friend. Now that his memory is back things are almost like they were before. Sure, I missed having him as a boyfriend, but I _really _missed having him as a friend too." I watch him intently as I wait for him to react.

He lets out a sigh. "Alright… By the way, I hope you're not mad but I think I'm going to ask Roxie out."

I feign hurt. "You've replaced me already? I didn't realize we were officially over!"

"Well I thought that, since you have James back and all… And we never really started back up when you returned… I thought that you wouldn't mind if I-"

I hold up my hand with a grin. "I was joking. I think that's a brilliant idea."

He breathes a sigh of relief and grins. "Okay good. Now get out. I have to change into my pajama bottoms."

I roll my eyes with a laugh. "Okay, okay. I'll see you in a bit." I walk out of his room and downstairs, heading straight for the kitchen. I grab a bowl of sliced up fruit and make my way back outside. I look out by the lake and grin.

Freddie has four tents set up in a square, all the tents entrances facing each other. There are tables and chairs set all around the center with a lamp on each tent, lighting up the area. I walk over to him and laugh. "You really went all out, huh?"

He nods as he lounges on one of the chairs. I plop down in one of the chairs next to him. "Aren't you going to go change?"

He shakes his head. "No… I'm bloody exhausted."

I chuckle at him and shake my head. "Why don't you go to sleep then?"

"Good idea…"

I roll my eyes and gesture to one of the tents. "I get those every now and then… Now go!"

He chuckles and holds his hands up defensively as he gets up from the chair. "Alright, alright I'm going!" He gets up off his chair and walks into a tent. James, Landen, Eli and Al come outside a few minutes after Freddie went into his tent. Brittney and Roxanne come out soon after.

Everyone but Brittney sits down and gets comfortable. She looks around then asks, "Where's Freddie?"

I nod my head toward the tent he went into. "He went to bed."

"Oh…" She lets out a dramatic yawn. "I'm tired… I'm going to go to bed. Maybe we all should! We don't want to be tired tomorrow!"

I let out a laugh and give her an odd look. "What?" She gives me a stern look and inconspicuously nods toward Freddie's tent. I let out a sigh and a fake yawn. "Oh, yea… Christmas morning and all that… James, why don't you bunk with Freddie. Eli, Al, Landen. You three bunk together. Roxie, you can either bunk by yourself or with me and Bri."

Roxanne laughs. "I'll bunk by myself. Not because I don't like you, but because I DO like you. I'm a sleep talker."

Brittney and I nod our thanks to her as everyone goes into their designated tents. As soon as Brittney and I get into our tent, she sits on her bed and stares at me. I crawl under my covers and give her a weird look. "Why are you bloody staring at me you nutter?"

She rolls her eyes. "I'm not staring at you, jerk. I'm waiting…"

"For what?" I lie on my back and put a strawberry slice in my mouth.

She shrugs her shoulders. "Everyone to get comfortable and fall asleep."

I pop another piece of fruit in my mouth. "Why?"

She grins at me. "So I can go 'see' Freddie…"

I choke on the fruit in my mouth as I sit upright. "Excuse me? He's asleep Bri!"

She shrugs her shoulders with a smirk. "For what I have planned, he doesn't need to be awake."

I grimace at her and set my fruit bowl down. "Bri that's disgusting… Your brother is in the tent across from his!"

She rolls her eyes. "I just want to-"

I hold up my hand and shake my head with a frown. "I _really_ don't want to know what you want to do with him… He's one of my best mates…"

She rolls her eyes again and gets up off her bed. "I think the coast is clear." She points her finger at me firmly. "You're not going to say anything, are you?"

I grimace again and shake my head. "I'm going to pretend this conversation never happened…"

"Good! See you in the morning!" She walks out of the tent and leaves me in the silence.

I pick up my bowl of fruit and eat the last fruit slice in the bowl.

"Hey, can I come in? It's bloody cold out here."

"James? Yea sure…" The flap opens and James walks in, his arms crossed tightly across his chest. "What are you doing here Jamie?"

He laughs as He sits on Brittney's bed. "Bri kicked me out of my tent. She can be a very scary girl when she wants to be! Do you mind if I sleep here tonight?"

I stifle a laugh and nod. "You can sleep in Bri's bed."

He nods his thanks as he crawls under the covers, pulling them up to his chin. He looks at me with a smirk. "By the way, nice shirt."

I return his smirk and shrug my shoulders. "Thanks. Some guy gave it to me."

"Again, I'm pretty sure you stole it from me."

I let out a laugh. "I did _not _steal it! I simply never gave it back to you."

He raises an eyebrow at me and chuckles. "Isn't that what I said?"

I smirk at him as I lie down in my bed. "Goodnight Jamie."

"Night Ari."

(Break)

I open my eyes as a tremor rocks through my body. "Why is it so damn cold?"

"It's snowing out. I just got up and checked it."

I look at my watch and groan. _12:18 am_… "What are you doing up Jamie?"

He laughs. "I got cold. Are you cold?"

Another convulsion shoots down my body as I silence my chattering teeth. "I'm bloody freezing."

"Alright, then get over here."

I roll my eyes with a smirk. "Yeah, I'm not _that_ cold…"

He chuckles at me. "But I am. Now get your butt over here before I get frostbite!"

I let out a laugh and get up from my bed. "Alright, alright! Just calm down you prat!" I quickly walk over and crawl under the covers with him. I didn't realize just how cold I was until now. His bed is so warm and his body is radiating heat. "You're not even cold you liar."

He shakes his head. "Not true. My toes are freezing…"

I roll my eyes. "Right… I would be mad at you but you're _so_ warm!"

I can hear the wind blowing against the outside of the tent violently and groan internally. Another shiver passes through my body so I cross my arms tightly across my chest and scoot closer to James, pressing my nose to his chest to warm it up. I can hear the smirk on his face when he asks, "Better?"

I nod. "Yep. You?"

He nods and drapes an arm over me. "Yep. Night Ari."

"Night Jamie."

**Thank you to everyone who took the time to leave a review, to those who have added this story to their alerts, and to all my other lovely readers! :) I really appreciate yalls continuous support! It really encourages me to write and update faster. :)**

**I am writing the next chapter now, so I will post it as soon as I finish writing it.**

**Thanks! :)**

**-Tx**


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

**Ari's POV**

"Seriously Ariana?"

I rub my eyes with a groan. "What Eli?"

He scoffs as he walks closer. "What is _wrong_ with you?"

I open my eyes and look around. It takes me a moment to recall that I'm in Brittney's bed with James. I could see how this might look suspicious… "Oh piss off. It was cold last night."

He shakes his head with a mix of a grimace and a smirk on his face. "Ew Ari. There are _plenty _of other ways to keep warm you know…"

"Wow Eli. Seriously, piss off."

Eli grimaces at us again and walks away, muttering something under his breath. I lift up James' arm and look at his watch, groaning internally as I see that it's 10:30 in the morning. I sigh as I flick James on the nose. "It's time to get up Jamie. Presents are going to be opened in thirty minutes."

He groans and puts his hand over my mouth. "That just means I have thirty more minutes to sleep. Now hush." He removes his hand from my mouth and drapes his arm over me.

I roll my eyes at him with a smirk. "Fine, but I'm not going to lie around in bed all day." I try to get out of the bed but he tightens his grip around me. I let out a laugh and try to remove his arm. "James! I have to pee!"

He groans again as I try to get up again. "No don't go! You're going to let the cold in!"

"Well I'm about to let the pee out! Jamie let me go!" I let out another laugh as I manage to escape his grasp and get out of bed. I stick my tongue out at him as I leave the tent. I poke my head back into the tent and say, "You better be out of that bed when I come back here."

He flips me off and pulls a pillow over his head. I laugh again and decide my bodily functions can wait. I scoop up a big handful of snow and tiptoe over to the bed. I swiftly lift up the pillow and drop the snow on James' face with a giggle. As soon as the snow falls on him and I see the shocked expression appear on his face, I sprint out of the tent and into the Burrow as fast as I can. I run into the bathroom and shut the door tightly behind me.

As soon as I've finished in the bathroom, I quietly open the door and peek around. Once I've determined that the coast is clear, I walk out of the bathroom and into the living room, which is full of people. The first person I see is Eli, who is smirking at me. "It's about time you showed up! We've all been waiting on you. Even James got here before you!"

I roll my eyes and take a seat next to Landen. "Sorry to have kept you all waiting."

Landen pats me on the shoulder and glares at Eli. "Don't worry Ari. James _just_ got here so we really weren't waiting on you."

Before anyone can say anything else, Ginny claps her hands together. "I guess this means we can get started. Lily dear, you go first."

As I watch Lily tear through her presents, Landen leans over and whispers. "Why is James staring at you like that?"

I sneak a glimpse at James and chuckle. He is sitting on the couch with his arms and legs crossed, a devilish expression playing on his face and a mischievous glint in his eye. "I dumped snow on him this morning to wake him up. He's probably still upset about it."

Landen looks over at James again and stifles a laugh as turns back and looks at me with wide eyes. "Probably! I know I would be! By the way, my dad will probably want to talk to you after this."

"Okay… About what?

He shakes his head. "I don't know. He was just telling me that he had to talk to you and, since we leave tomorrow, he will probably talk to you today."

I nod. "Okay well do you-"

Grandma Weasley thrusts a box in both of our laps. "Can you two stop whispering long enough to open your presents?"

We both grin at her and nod. We tear open the wrapped boxes in front of us and laugh as we pull out the signature knit sweaters made by Grandma Weasley. I get up and thank her with a hug while Landen vocalizes his thanks. I head back to the couch Landen and I were sitting on to continue our conversation when my vision goes blinding white. I grasp Landen's arm tightly as my legs fall out from under me and I'm brought outside a large manor.

"_My Lord, are you sure that's when the American Embassy is going to be meeting?"_

_Caledon growls at Castor. "You dare question me you insolent coward? I should kill you just for doubting me…"_

_Castor shakes his head vigorously. "No my Lord! I would never question you! I merely meant to confirm the facts!"_

_Caledon shakes his head. "Your cowardice is astounding… Yes, I'm sure that's when the American Embassy will be meeting. I made sure of it. I have more loyal allies further on the inside."_

_Castor's mouth falls agape. "More loyal? No one is more loyal than me my Lord! I have done everything you have asked and more! I've even killed my own son for you!"_

"_That you have but, as I said before, you are a coward and you are loyal to me simply because you aren't competent enough to do anything on your own."_

_Castor grimaces at Caledon's harsh tone. "My Lord, not that I would ever question your reasoning, but how does the American Embassy play into your plan to attack the American muggles?"_

_Caledon looks around and shakes his head. "Not now. Right now I need to be alone. I will explain everything tonight."_

I blink a few times and find myself sitting back in the living room of the Burrow, blushing when I notice everyone around me. I realize I'm still forcefully gripping Landen's arm and I release it with an apologetic look. He tries to inconspicuously rub the spot on his arm I was holding, but he doesn't succeed. I can see the spot starting to bruise so I look at him apologetically again. "Sorry Lan… Are you alright?"

Eli rolls his eyes at me. "Who cares?! No offense Landen… What the hell just happened, Ari?"

I shrug my shoulders. "I just got a little dizzy is all. I, um… I just need some air." I get up from the couch and look at Grandma Weasley. "Thank you for the sweater, I love it." I look at everyone, my eye catching Harry's. He gives me a knowing look and frowns. I turn away from him and walk outside, inhaling deeply as soon as I step out of the house. I walk over to the chairs Freddie set up last night and take a seat.

I am literally sitting for only a moment before the door opens. I let out a sigh and say with a smirk, "Took you long enough Jamie."

James scoffs and takes a seat next to me. "How'd you know it was me?"

"Because, although the others are curious about what just happened, you're the only one brave enough to actually ask."

He nods with a laugh. "Alright… Does this mean you'll tell me what just happened?"

I shake my head and smirk. "I'm not telling anyone anything until I've talked to your dad first."

James groans and kicks some snow. "Okay fine… So what's going on with you and Landen anyways? What were you two whispering about?"

I glance over at him with a smirk. "Well- Wait… Jamie, are you _jealous?_"

"No! I just… No!"

He has a bit of a blush creeping up his face, which turns my smirk into a grin. "You sound a bit jealous, Jamie…"

He rolls his eyes. "I'm not jealous! I just wanted to know what you two were whispering about!"

I pat him on the arm and continue to grin. "It's alright if you're jealous, you know… I won't think any less of you."

He throws up his hands. "Fine! I'm jealous, alright?!" I smile triumphantly at him, which earns another eye roll from him. "Well you don't have to look so bloody happy about it, Ari!"

"Sorry… I just find it amusing that you're jealous of _Landen _of all people! You both are such girls! How did I ever date either of you? We were planning secret dates for when we get back to Hogwarts, that's all." He groans and gets up from the chair. I grab his arm with a laugh. "Jamie, I was only joking. Don't go."

He sits back down and frowns at me. "Not funny, Ari."

I roll my eyes with a sigh. "Look, you really have no reason to be jealous. Yes, Landen and I dated for a few months, but that was while you were going out with Monroe. And yes, we did like each other, but obviously not enough to start dating when I got back."

"Well what about when you two snogged the morning you got back?"

I let out a laugh. "I think we _planned _on dating again when I got back, but some… things… got in the way. Not that we're complaining, those _things_ were way better for us than we were for each other. We realized we're better off as friends and have decided to keep things friendly."

He nods. "Oh… What were these _things_ that got in the way_?_"

I let out another laugh and roll my eyes. "My, you sure are interrogative today! The things were some people we fancy. Now drop it please!" I stand up from my chair and turn to walk inside.

"But-"

Before James can say anything else, I grab some snow and throw it at him. He wipes his hands over his face and playfully narrows his eyes at me. "You know, that's the second time you've done that… And I haven't properly gotten you back for the _first_ time…"

He picks up a handful of snow and balls it up then lobs it at me. The snowball hits me directly in the arm as I crouch down to gather up some snow. I let out a loud scream/laugh as the icy ball hits me, remains of it hitting me in the face. I let out another shriek as he jumps over the chair and tackles me to the ground. I laugh as I try to wriggle free from his grip.

I finally free myself from his grasp and fling some snow at his face with a laugh as I get up. That one action launches us into an intense snowball fight, icy snowballs flying every which way. I hear the door open behind me but I don't turn to see who came out.

Suddenly James gets hit with a few snowballs I didn't throw. I turn to see Brittney, Eli and Landen standing behind me, each holding a snowball. Freddie, Al and Roxanne all run over to stand behind James and pick up some snow. As soon as everyone is armed with a snowball, we begin our snowball fight again. Landen focuses his snowballs on Roxanne, hitting James with a few stray ones, while Brittney mainly hits Freddie with her snowballs. Eli and Al throw their snowballs at James and me, serving as our backup.

After throwing hundreds of snowballs, and being hit with just as many, we all finally concede to a truce. I turn to give Eli a high five and stumble back, my vision once again blurring into a bright white. The last thing I hear and feel is James yelling for someone to go get his dad then him catching my arm as I stumble back onto my butt again.

_Caledon sits in an unlit room at a long table holding a small, cloudy glass ball in his hand. He stares at the ball intently, twirling it in his fingers gingerly._

_Suddenly the room fills with a raspy, almost eerie voice._

"_Under the full moon, the new Dark Lord will rise, only to be fought by a girl with a fire inside and the oldest product of lightening. Three will enter the battle, but only two will leave alive. Although the three are equal in power, a secret will be revealed that will lead to the downfall of one."_

_The room falls silent. Caledon continues to stare at the orb until he suddenly throws it against a wall, the room filling with the noise of shattering glass. A growl builds deep in his throat as he stares at the shards of glass on the floor. "She WILL die before she discovers my secret… I'll ensure that myself."_


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

**James' POV**

I see Ariana stumble back from her high five with Eli; a stressed expression on her face, the same expression she had on her face before. I rush toward her as she stumbles back again and falls onto her butt. I point to the house and yell, "Hey! Someone go get my dad! NOW!"

Eli, Brittney and Al run inside while Roxanne, Landen and Freddie all back away as I kneel in the snow and catch Ariana's arm before she can fall any further into the cold snow. I wrap her arm around my neck and scoop her up out of the snow. I walk us into the house and sigh as I lie her down on the couch. As soon as her head hits the couch she jerks upright with a sharp gasp, almost knocking me backward. She looks around the room with a bit of a panicked expression. As soon as she catches sight of me, she grabs my arm. "Where's your dad?"

Just then Eli, Brittney and Al come down the stairs with my dad and Landen's dad following close behind. My dad walks into the living room and sits on the table in front of Ariana. "It happened again?"

She doesn't answer his question, but instead stares at his forehead curiously. "Mr. Potter, can I see it please? I mean, I know it's there, but I want to see it so I can confirm my suspicions."

My dad stares at Ariana intently as he pulls his hair up and reveals the lightning bolt shaped scar on his forehead. Ariana reaches a hand out and traces her first finger over the scar then drops her hand and nods firmly. "Let's go. We have some things to discuss." She gets up off the couch and points to me. "He should come too. I think it might involve him."

My dad shakes his head as he glances over at me. "No. I'll talk to you first and then decide if he should hear about it."

She narrows her eyes at my dad and clenches her fists. "His bloody life could be on the line! I think he deserves to know!"

I step forward and place my hand on Ariana's shoulder, turning her to look at me and firmly say, "It's alright. Go talk to my dad."

She stares at me for a moment then nods and walks to the stairs, stopping at the bottom one. "Are you coming, Mr. Potter?"

My dad gets up from the table and walks to the stairs. Ariana gestures up the stairs in front of her and steps to the side. "After you."

My dad walks up the stairs and, before following him, Ariana shoots me one more uneasy glace. I nod to her and she walks up the stairs and out of sight, leaving me downstairs in an awkwardly silent room to think about her most recent claims. Is my life really in danger?

**Ari's POV**

Harry and I walk up the stairs in silence. He stops once we get to the top floor and takes a seat on a couch against the wall. "So what did you see?"

I lean against the wall and sigh. "I saw Caledon listening to a prophecy."

His expression remains stoic. "Did you get to hear what it said?"

"Under the full moon, the new Dark Lord will rise, only to be fought by a girl with a fire inside and the oldest product of lightning. Three will enter the battle, but only two will leave alive. Although the three are equal in power, a secret will be revealed that will lead to the downfall of one."

He reaches up and touches his scar. "The oldest product of lightning…"

I scoff. "Really? That's all you heard? How about the part that said three will enter the battle but only two will leave alive?"

He pinches the bridge of his nose and opens his mouth to answer, but gets cut off by a bleeding Al. "Dad they're back."

Harry's eyes widen and he looks at me and Al definitely. "You two take the rest of the kids back to Grimmauld Place. The rest of us will join you shortly."

Al nods. "James already did."

I nod to Harry as he brandishes his wand and rushes down the stairs. Al looks upset as he watches his father go. I walk over and squeeze his arm. "He'll be alright. Let's go make sure Jamie got everyone."

I pull out my wand and we walk down the stairs. I can clearly hear the adults fighting and as we get closer to the bottom floor, I can understand why. There is a gaping hole in the living room wall that easily shows the ongoing battle outside. Once we get to the bottom floor, I point my wand ahead of me defensively and yell "Hello? Any more kids here?"

_CRACK!_

I clasp my hands over my nose as I register what just happened. I look under the stairs and see Lily cowering with closed eyes and her fingers wrapped tightly around a long board. "Really Lily? You hit me with a board? I think you broke my nose!"

She opens her eyes and her mouth falls open. "Sorry Ari! I thought you were someone else!"

I grab her hand and pull her out from under the stairs, wrapping her in a hug. "Who the hell else would I be? Why didn't you go with Jamie?"

I let her jump on my back as I hold her up with one hand and hold my wand out with the other, blood running freely down my face from my broken nose. We meet up with Al his eyes widen when he sees my nose. He points his wand at my nose, causing a loud pop to emit from it as it snaps back into place and heals. I wince away and groan. "Bloody hell that hurt…"

He rolls his eyes and waves his wand again, cleaning the blood away, before looking at Lily. "What is she doing here?"

"I found her under the stairs. Let's go home and get her to safety." As we get ready to apparate to Grimmauld Place, a Death Eater runs into the house and shoots a spell at us. It hits the stairs directly, causing them to explode. I drop Lily off my back and look at Al. "Go. I'll catch up."

I brush the shrapnel from the stairs off and shoot a spell at the Death Eater as I hear aloud POP behind me. The Death Eater shoots another spell, knocking my wand from my hand. "What are you going to do now that you're disarmed, bitch?"

I smirk at him as I sneakily grab a board off the ground and step toward him. "You could have killed me twice already, you idiot. It's too late now though." I swing the board at him and it connects with his head, knocking him to the ground forcefully.

I kick his wand away from him and scramble over to the stairs and sift through the rubble, searching for my wand. Once I've found it I quickly apparate to Grimmauld place. I throw open the door to the house and slam it shut once I'm inside. I lean back against the door and take a deep breath then push myself off the door and launch up the stairs, stopping on the first floor. "Is everyone here?"

One by one heads poke over the railing, revealing everyone's safety. The last to poke their heads out are Al and Lily, who are in Al's room, and James, who is in his own room. As soon as I see James I point back into his room. "Go. We need to talk now."

He nods and opens his door for me, crossing his room to put his wand down as I walk in. I shut the door and sigh as James struggles to wrap a bandage around a large cut on his arm. He looks over at me and smirks. "I'll be fine. Nothing I can't handle."

I shake my head at him and briskly walk across the room, grabbing the bandage from him. "Here, let me help you." I sit us down on his bed and sigh. I wrap the bandage around the cut and tie it tightly then set the remaining bandage in my lap. He closes his eyes and leans forward into my hand as I run my thumb along the cut that runs vertically down from right above the top of his right eyebrow down to the top of his right cheek. "Did you take care of that yet?"

He opens his eyes and grabs the bandage from me with a frown. "No I'll take care of it later. And thanks for the help… Although it looks like you could use some medical attention too, you know."

"What?" I look at my arms and return his frown. "What are you talking about?"

He smirks and walks into his bathroom, coming back a few minutes later with a towel, a bowl of water, and a handheld mirror. He hands me the mirror first and I accept it graciously. I hold it up and grimace at what I see. The whole left side of my face and neck is littered with cuts and scrapes and there are still scraps of wood tangled in my hair. I reach up and pull out a chunk of wood from my hair with a groan. "I look like hell…"

"It's not that bad." He dips the towel into the water bowl and motions for me to turn my head. I comply and turn my head to the right. James lifts the towel and is about to place it on my face when I pull away, so he places a hand on the right side of my face to hold me still. He places the towel on one of my cuts and a stinging sensation fills the cut. I lean into his hand as I try to pull away from the towel. He sighs and gently presses on my face while bringing the towel back onto my face. "I know, I know… It's going to sting a bit. I'm sorry, but these cuts need to be cleaned. How did this happen, anyways?"

I clench my teeth and grasp the bottom of his shirt tightly as he dabs the towel across another cut. "A Death Eater got into the house and blew up the stairs while Al, Lily and I were trying to apparate here. Merlin that stings! That's not water, is it?"

He shakes his head with another frown. "Well then these definitely need to be cleaned and no, this isn't water... We're obviously going to be here for a while, so do you want to tell me about what happened today NOW or after I'm done?"

I groan at the stinging on my face and he gives me a sympathetic look. "I'll tell you about it now. Maybe it will distract me from the torture you're putting me through."

He sighs as he gives me another sympathetic look. "I know… Sorry…"

I pat him on the arm with the hand that's _not _tightly clutching his shirt. "I know, I know. You're being as gentle as you can. And I DO appreciate you doing this for me. SO! I think I know more of Caledon's plan, but I'm not positive. I think he's planning something against the American Embassy, but I don't know which one or when…"

"When did you see this one?"

I sigh. "This morning. I haven't told your dad about that one yet. I don't want to send him on a wild chase all over the world because I don't know the exact location of Caledon's plan."

"Okay, well what was the second one? I'm guessing this one is where you saw my life in danger because I don't see how the first one is a danger to me at all." He soothingly strokes my right cheek with his thumb as he spreads out the damp towel and presses it onto the side of my face and neck.

I wince and inhale sharply. "Shit! A little warning would have been nice! Anyways, the second one was just about Caledon. He was sitting at a table listening to a prophecy."

He pulls the towel off and releases my face. "Alright, you're good to go." He sets the towel down on his bedside table and sighs. "What was the prophecy? Do you remember it?"

I nod as I get off the bed and grab the towel. "I remember it word for word. But first, I'm going to go get a fresh towel to clean the cut over your eye." I walk into his bathroom and toss the towel into the sink so I can wash the slight red off of it later. I head over to the closet and grab a new towel then walk out of the bathroom and sit back down on the bed.

I dip the towel in the clear liquid and grab James' chin as I lightly dab the towel on his cut. He winces a bit but remains silent. After neither of us says anything for a bit, he clears his throat. "So are you going to tell me what the prophecy said or not?"

I sigh and drop the towel from his face. "Under the full moon, the new Dark Lord will rise, only to be fought by a girl with a fire inside and the oldest product of lightning. Three will enter the battle, but only two will leave alive. Although the three are equal in power, a secret will be revealed that will lead to the downfall of one."

He stares at me for a moment and reciprocates my sigh. "Oh… So you think I'm the one that's going to… die?"

I shake my head and let go of his chin, lowering my gaze to the towel in my hand. "No. I mean, it's possible, but I don't think it's going to be you…"

"Then who do you think it's going to be?"

I shrug my shoulders while keeping my gaze on the towel. "Well I can _hope_ that it's going to be Caledon, but… But I have this strange feeling it's going to be me."

He grabs my face and pulls it up, giving me a rather frustrated look. "Wait, what?! How do you even know that the prophecy is about us? And how do you know it won't be me?"

"Well, for one: Caledon has been calling me little fireball. Plus my patronus is a phoenix… Which would make me the girl with fire… Two: The oldest product of lightning? You're the oldest son of Harry, who has a lightning bolt scar. And three: Because I'm pretty sure you can't hear a prophecy from the source unless it involves you. And I heard that prophecy pretty clearly. Oh, and I know it won't be you because I refuse to let that happen. It's either me or Caledon. End of story." I see his expression and quote him with a smile. "Jamie, I'll be fine. Nothing I can't handle."

He frowns, clearly not amused by the fact that I quoted him and drops his hands from my face. "That's just not something I can accept."

I sigh and shake my head at him, my smile gentle. "James, I don't think that's anything you can control. If I can accept it, then you should be able to also. Besides! I could be completely wrong. It could be Caledon who dies…"

He shakes his head. "No… You don't understand…" His brows furrow together and he purses his lips, as if he is having trouble forming his words. "I just can't lose you again."

"Excuse me? Again?"

He nods. "Yes, again. I mean, I may have only lost my memory before and I know I didn't remember you, but those few months that I didn't have my memory were the worst. Partially because we hated each other so much, partially because I was going out with that needy wanker Monroe, but mostly because I constantly felt like something was missing. Obviously _now _I know it was _you_ that was missing, but I didn't know then. If it was that bad when I _didn't_ know what I was missing, I can only imagine how bad it would be if I _knew._" He gets up off the bed with a sigh and pinches the bridge of his nose as he leans his back on the wall across from me. "Ari, you cannot ask me to knowingly lose you again and just be alright with that. I love you, but that is something I _cannot _do. I can't… I just-"

I jump off the bed and launch myself at him; getting up on my toes, grabbing his face and kissing him full on the mouth. He winds his arms around my waist and pulls me flush against him, pressing his lips firmly against mine. I pull my face away from him and sigh. "Sorry…"

He laughs at me with a smirk. "Oh… Mhm yea… Me too…" He smirks at me again before he recaptures my lips with his.


	20. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 20**

**Ari's POV**

I hear the faint sound of a door closing from behind James' bedroom door so I pull my lips away from James with a laugh and prop myself up on my elbows on his bed. "Jamie, not that this isn't loads of fun, but I think the others are back and we've been at this for a bit."

He props himself up too and shrugs his shoulders. "We can let everyone else say hi to them first. Besides, I've got a few lost months to make up for…" He leans over and plants a kiss on my nose.

At that moment, James' bedroom door opens and Eli pokes his head in. As soon as he sees James and me tangled up on the bed together, he smirks. "Really Ari? How many times am I going to catch you two like this today? What, were you trying to keep warm again?"

James smirks at me. "Your brother's a real prat…"

I nod my head and return his smirk. "That he is." I turn my smirk over to Eli. "What's up?"

He rolls his eyes with a laugh. "I just wanted to let you know that everyone is back and just fine. Oh and we 'kids' are going to go to Landen's house to play some quidditch since he has a pitch in his back yard. Do you two want to come with?"

I give James the most pleading look I can manage. "Oh please, Jamie? I haven't played in _ages_!"

Landen pokes his head in under Eli's. "Are you two coming?"

James smirks at Landen. "Of course!"

Landen lets out a laugh. "Good! You can be the other captain then!"

James and I jump off the bed and Landen laughs again. "You two might want to get dressed first…"

I look down at my clothes and a laugh escapes my lips; I'm still in my pajamas. "Valid point… Give me ten minutes."

I run out of James' room and up to my room on the fifth floor. I walk over to my closet and grab a red long sleeved shirt. I change into the shirt then walk over to my dresser and pull out a pair of jeans. I quickly change into those and pull on my black converse. I look at my alarm clock and grin. _Four minutes to spare…_

I quickly brush my hair and pull it up into a ponytail before tucking my wand behind my ear and running back downstairs. I meet up with Landen and sigh. "Do you have an extra broom? Mine is still in my room at Hogwarts."

He nods and holds his arm out to me. "I _might _have an extra broom… Are you ready to go? You're the only one left."

I return his nod and grab his arm. In an instant, he and I leave Grimmauld Place and land outside a large white house with a black roof. We walk through the big double doors into the house I can't contain the gasp that escapes my lips.

There is a gigantic crystal chandelier hanging from the eggshell colored ceiling and long, winding stairs that lead up to a second level. There are large glass doors on either side of us. One that leads into a gigantic kitchen, where I can see multiple house elves working, and one that leads to an office. In front of us, there are huge, ornate wooden double doors with wrought iron windows that show a quidditch pitch out back. I look over to Landen with wide eyes and my mouth agape. "Lan, your house is AMAZING!"

He looks at me with a grimace. "If you say so…"

I smack him on the arm. "What are you talking about? This place is huge!"

"And empty..."

I roll my eyes and smirk. "What? This place is the opposite of empty!"

"I meant empty as in my parents are never home, you twat! Any time that I'm here, I'm here by myself. Now! Let's go find you a broom. As I said before, I _might_ have an extra one you can use but I'm not positive."

We walk through the wooden double doors to the back and Landen leads me to a shed. "If I _do_ have a spare broom, it will be in here." He smirks at me as he opens the door to the shed. "If you can manage to find a broom in here, you can use it."

A laugh bubbles up out of my lips as I look into the broom filled shed. "It was a bit difficult, but I think I found one… Thanks."

I grab a broom that is hanging on one of the walls and Landen grabs the broom next to it before we take off toward the pitch. Once we get there Eli lets out an impatient huff. "It's about time Ari! Once again, we were stuck waiting on you…"

I flip him off with a grin and look at Landen. "Who's the other captain?"

He places his hand on his chest in fake offense. "Me, of course!"

I let out a laugh as I shake my head. "Okay, well who picks first?"

He points to James with a grin. "Loser picks first."

James flips Landen off with a laugh while the rest of us roar with laughter. "Fine. I pick Freddie."

Landen grins. "I pick Al."

Once the teams are set up, we mount our brooms and get ready to play. Landen is playing seeker while he has Roxanne at goal, Al at chaser, and Eli as chaser with him, while James is playing chaser and has me at seeker, Brittney at chaser and Freddie at goal. Since Brittney and Eli haven't ever played before, we have them both playing chasers and we are playing without beaters. We are all also playing new positions since it's rather unfair for us to play our normal positions against two new people.

While Landen talks to his team, James flies up next to me and says, "I bet you a proper dinner that I can score ten times before you catch the snitch."

I arch my eyebrow and smirk at him. "You're on, Potter…"

He returns my smirk as he flicks me on the nose. "That's _captain_ to you, Brighton."

I roll my eyes and stick out my tongue at him as he flies back down. I lower down next to Brittney and grin. "Are you ready?"

She shakes her head nervously. "NO! I have NO idea what I'm doing!"

I pat her on the arm with a laugh. "Just try to get the quaffle through any of the three hoops over there and avoid touching the gold ball with wings. Only Landen or I can grab that. Each time you toss the quaffle through a hoop its worth ten points and if Landen or I catch the snitch, it's worth 250 points and the game ends. Oh! And you can take the quaffle from Eli or Al if necessary, but they will be trying to do the same thing to us. You good now?"

She nods a little less nervously and looks forward. "I think it's about to start. Oh hell, I think I'm going to hurl…"

I chuckle at her and take a deep breath. I know this isn't a real match, but I still hate to lose and I don't plan on losing to Eli. He'll never let me live it down…

Suddenly Landen's voice interrupts my thought. "So how about we make this interesting?"

James laughs. "What did you have in mind?"

Landen grins at him. "How about the loser has to cook a delicious dinner for the winners, AND clean up the mess afterwards… All without magic…"

I look down at James and see him looking up at me with a smirk before he answers Landen. "Perfect. Now are we going to continue talking or are we going to play?"

Lily yells "GO!" as she lobs the quaffle up as high as she can and releases the snitch. As soon as the quaffle leaves her hands, everyone mobilizes. Al, Eli, Brittney and James all rush toward the quaffle while Landen and I circle above looking for the snitch.

Al catches the quaffle first, much to my dismay. James flattens himself to his broom and chases after him as Al races toward Freddie. James is almost close enough to get the quaffle from Al when he shoots on Freddie.

Freddie blocks the shot and flexes his arms. "Yeah! Nothing gets past Freddie-o!"

Brittney catches the falling quaffle and looks at me panicked. "What do I do with this?"

I point down the pitch. "GO THAT WAY!"

She looks up at me and frowns. "DON'T YELL AT ME!"

James snorts as he clutches his sides and laughs. "Just fly toward Roxie and try to score on her!" Brittney tucks the quaffle under her arm and races toward the Roxanne. Once she's close enough, she hurls the quaffle at the bottom left goal, sending it sailing through unopposed.

(Break)

I circle above the pitch looking for the snitch, a grunt of frustration emanating from my throat. The score is 20-90 with us in the lead. Brittney has scored twice while James has scored seven times, which means he's almost at ten goals and I _still_ haven't found the snitch.

Suddenly I see a glint of something off to my right. A grin spreads across my face as I press my body to my broom and race toward the glint, only subconsciously noticing the three people standing next to the house.

Apparently Landen saw me take off because I can hear him following behind me. I see the snitch take off to the left, toward the center of the pitch, so I turn my broom to follow it. It dives toward the ground and so do I; making sure to mimic it's every movement. I outstretch my hand toward the golden ball and stretch, my fingertips almost grazing the edge of the orb. Before I can grab the snitch, it levels out and zooms forward. I jerk my broom flat and narrowly avoid hitting the ground as I rush to follow the snitch.

I hear James yell above me "That's eight now, Ari! Are you _trying_ to let me win?"

I roll my eyes with a laugh and extend my hand out again as my feet lightly brush the grass below, stretching my arm to its limits as I get closer to the winged ball. I tightly enclose my fingers around the snitch, earning an angry shout from Al.

I can hear Freddie cheering and then I'm tackled off my broom to the ground. "Good catch Ari! I really didn't want to cook these blokes dinner."

I try to wriggle free, but I'm pinned tightly to the ground. "Get off of me Freddie!"

He gets up off of me with a laugh and helps me up. "Sorry, mate…"

Everyone else lowers to the ground and walks over as I dust myself off. James walks over and claps me on the back. "Bloody good catch, Ari!"

Brittney runs over and gives Freddie a hug. "We won!"

Landen, Al, Eli and Roxanne all walk over to us with disgruntled expressions on their faces. James looks at them with a smirk. "So what are you making us for dinner?"

Landen looks around at his team then smirks at James. "That's a surprise."

Just then, Harry and Landen's dad, Thomas, walk over with a third man. The third man has platinum blonde hair and grey eyes. His mouth is pulled up into a small smile as I look him over with furrowed brows. He is dressed in a black suit with a green tie and Italian loafers, carrying a cane in one of his hands.

I smirk at the sight of the cane as Thomas steps forward and clears his throat. "Ariana, this is Draco Malfoy. He is going to be teaching you occlumency to help you block out the new Dark Lord."

I glance over to Harry, who has his arms crossed and looks less than pleased about this. He catches my eye and sighs. "You don't have to do this if you don't want to…"

Draco looks over at Harry with a smirk. "What's wrong Pott… Harry? Still don't trust me after all these years? I thought we were past this…"

Harry narrows his eyes at Draco. "You know that's not it… She's like my daughter and she's been through a LOT. I remember how hard occlumency was for me and-"

I clear my throat and step forward. "_SHE_ is standing right here. And although _she_ appreciates e concern, _she_ is always up for a challenge." I extend my hand out to Draco and smile politely. "Ariana Brighton, but everyone calls me Ari."

Draco accepts my hand with a smirk. "Scorp wasn't exaggerating when he told me about you… As stated before, I'm Draco Malfoy."

I frown at him. "Scorpius has told you about me? Oh Merlin…"

He nods with a chuckle then get serious. "Yes and, if what he has told me is true, then this is going to be difficult. Are you sure you want to do this?"

I glance over at Harry again and see his uneasy look. I answer Draco, looking at Harry the entire time. "Yes, I'm sure. I can do this."

Draco nods with a stoic expression. "Okay…"

"Well Mister Malfoy-"

He holds up his hand to stop me. "Draco, please."

I nod. "Well, _Draco_, when do we start?"

He raises his eyebrows at me and looks over to Harry then back to me. "We can start tomorrow, since it _is_ still Christmas day and you probably have plans for the evening."

"As a matter of fact, I do. Tomorrow is perfect."

He nods seriously. "Alright. I will pick you up from Po… HARRY'S manor at nine tomorrow morning." With that, he apparates away.

I turn around and look at Landen, Eli, Al and Roxanne with a smirk. "Don't you lot have a dinner to prepare?"

Eli fakes a laugh and flips me off. Roxanne rolls her eyes and grabs Landen's arm while Al frowns and grabs Eli's arm. The four of them apparate back to Grimmauld place with a sharp _POP!_

I walk over to Harry and sigh. "I need to talk to you…"

He nods and gestures for me to follow him as he walks out of the group's ear shot. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing… I just didn't tell you everything I saw when we were at the Burrow. After I opened Grandma Weasley's present, I saw Caledon talking to Cass about the American Embassy. They didn't say anything more than that they were planning on attacking one of them, so I have no idea when or where this is going to happen."

He nods again and pinches the bridge of his nose before patting me on the shoulder. "Thank you for telling me… I will see to it that I figure out the details of this." He looks past me and then flashes a smirk at me. "Now go celebrate your victory." He walks over to Thomas and says something before they both apparate away.

I nod at him with a grin then walk back to James, Freddie and Brittney. "We better get back. I don't trust Eli and Landen to prepare us food without sneaking in something that will make us sick…"

Brittney laughs and nods her head. "Oh hell, you totally have a point…"

Brittney grabs Freddie's arm and they apparate back with a crisp _POP!_

I smirk at James as he holds out his arm. "By the way, I _DO_ believe _someone_ owes me a proper dinner…"

He laughs loudly. "I _do_ believe you're right… Just let me know when you want to cash that in…"

I let out a laugh. "Oh don't worry, I will." I reach over and grab his arm with a smirk. As soon as I touch his arm, Landen's house disappears and number 12 Grimmauld place appears in front of me. We walk into the house and take a seat at the kitchen table to talk about the match with Freddie and Brittney while the others make us dinner.

**Sorry for making yall wait so long for this update! I rewrote this chapter at least four times before I found a version of it that I liked. At first, I was going to kill off a few of the adult characters, such as Ginny or George, to give James a more personal reason to fight Caledon, but I figured out a way ro do that without having to kill any adults in the story just yet. Plus I didn't want to depress yall after I just cheered you up with some James/Ariana lovin. :P**

**As always, I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions about this chapter!**

**I would also like to thank those of you who took the time to leave me a review for the last chapter, those of you who added this story to your alerts, and those of you who have stuck with me through the good and bad chapters of this story. I really do appreciate all my lovely readers and I don't know what I would do without yall. :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx**


	21. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 21**

**Ari's POV**

I roll over with a groan and open my eyes just wide enough to barely see the time. _7:59 am…_

I sit up and stretch my arms out, letting a loud yawn fill the room as I do. I hang my legs over the edge of the bed and stretch my back with a grunt. I look over at my clothes from yesterday, which are sitting in a pile on my floor, and laugh as I walk into the bathroom to get ready for the day.

Last night's dinner had been loads of fun. It started out nice, with Freddie, Brittney, James and me talking about the match, but quickly turned a bit crazy. Apparently Al overheard James tell Freddie that Al cheated with his first goal, which offended Al and he threw some food at James, which turned our dinner into a food fight. By the end of it, all hard feelings were forgotten and there was food all over the place: plastered on the walls, on our clothes, on the floor, on the table, under the table, on the windows, and even on the ceiling.

Grandma Weasley and Ginny walked into the dining room just as we were running out of food to throw and shrieked when they saw the mess. We all got in loads of trouble and we _all_ had to clean up the mess without using magic. We turned it into a race to see who could clean fastest which turned our punishment into a game and it made us clean faster.

I look in the mirror and smile at my cut free face and neck. Last night, Al and Ginny healed all the cuts I had gotten from the stair explosion earlier yesterday, so now my face and neck are smooth again.

I walk out of the bathroom and venture into my closet to pick out my clothes. I grab the first sweater I see and pull it over my head. I laugh when I realize it's the crimson sweater Grandma Weasley made for me last year. I grab a pair of clean jeans and pull them on then grab my converse and put those on too. I brush through my messy brown hair and put it into a braid.

I grab my wand and look at the clock again. _8:50 am…_

I walk out of my room and descend the stairs to the main floor and enter the newly cleaned dining room. Harry is sitting at the table eating some eggs and toast with a bowl of fruit and a cup of juice while reading the Daily Prophet. He obviously heard me come in because he sets down the paper and looks at me. "Are you ready for today?"

I lean against the wall and nod. "Any tips?"

"Keep your mind clear."

I snort. "Noted…" He gets a nervous look on his face, which earns a sigh from me. "Mister Potter, I'll be fine. I will let you know how it went when I get back."

He nods with a sigh. I close my eyes and think back to two years ago, to the house I stayed in for only a few days; to Potter manor.

I open my eyes again and see the unkempt ruins of what used to be Potter manor and can't help but get a sick feeling in my stomach. The state of this vine, plant and snow covered manor was and is entirely my fault… If I hadn't moved in with the Potters two years ago, they would still be living in their lovely manor today.

I walk over and take a seat on a leaf and snow covered bench outside the house and cross my legs while I wait for Draco to pick me up. Suddenly I hear an all too familiar voice next to me that sends chills down my spine. "Hello little fireball… Expelliarmus!"

**James' POV**

I trudge down the stairs and let out a rather large yawn. I walk into the kitchen and see dad sitting at the table reading the Daily Prophet so I plop down into the chair next to him. "Morning dad."

He looks up from the paper and down at the watch on his wrist with a smirk. "Good _afternoon_, James."

"Did Ari leave for her occlumency lesson already?"

"Yes, a while ago. It's noon…" He goes back to reading the paper. "I guess you're going to have to find something else to do today other than snogging Ariana…"

My eyes widen and I can feel the heat rising in my face. "Dad…"

He puts the paper down and looks at me with a smirk. "Hey, your mum and I were young once. I know teenagers have needs…"

My eyes open even wider. "DAD!"

He shrugs his shoulders as his smirk grows. "What? I'm just saying I get it. You two have hormones and they're hard to control. Your mum and I-"

I throw my hands up in the air and feel my face flush red. "DAD! Bloody hell! I _really _don't want to hear about you and mum!"

He stifles a laugh as he says, "Alright… Just make sure you are safe when you two are…"

I slap my palm to my forehead and groan as I get up from the table. "DAD! We haven't done anything like that! Now… Please excuse me while I go kill myself because no amount of magic in the _world _could make me forget this horrid conversation…"

Dad clutches his sides as he roars with laughter, clearly amused by how uncomfortable I am with the whole conversation, as I leave the dining room and walk back up to my room. I shut my door and flop down on my bed, burying my face into my comforter with a grunt. "He's so awful!"

I hear my door open. I lift my head and look toward the door. Al is halfway standing in my room with a partially sleepy, partially angry expression on his face. "What the hell was all that yelling about?"

I frown at him. "Your bloody dad is awful…"

Al leans back against the doorframe and grins. "I can only imagine what he did."

He looks at me expectantly, but all he gets out of me is an eye roll. He lets out a laugh and crosses his arms. "So what are you going to do today now that Ariana is gone?"

I flip him off with a laugh. "I DO have my own life, you know! I think I can manage _one_ day without her! I mean, I did just fine for the first fifteen years I didn't know her…"

Al smirks as he walks over and jumps onto my bed. "Is that up for debate?"

I push him off my bed with a smirk. "You're an ass, Albus Severus Potter."

He pops up off the floor and grins as he takes a bow. "Thank you, thank you… But seriously, what are we going to do today?"

I shrug my shoulders. "We could go hang out at the park like we used to…"

He nods his approval. "You know, I DO think it is due time we paid a visit to that park. It's been much too long."

I point to the door with a smirk. "Go wake everyone up. We'll leave in an hour."

He runs out of my room as I get off my bed and walk into my bathroom to begin getting ready.

(Break)

Al, Freddie, Brittney, Roxanne, Landen, Lily and I all walk down the street toward the park. We didn't actually leave one like we planned because mum made us do some chores before we left. Apparently our punishment from last night carried over into today… So we actually ended up leaving at four.

Roxanne and Lily walk ahead holding hands while Landen, Eli, Al and I all walk slowly and talk to each other. We make it to the park a few minutes after Lily and Roxanne, who are sitting on the swings laughing. The guys and I all each take a seat on a swing and grin as Eli says "I bet you all I can swing higher than you…"

I laugh. "You're on!"

Al nods with a smirk. "Absolutely!"

Landen grins. "Of course! It wouldn't be fun unless we were competing!"

Eli smirks at us. "Perfect. I'll count us down. 3… 2… 1!"

**Ari's POV**

My wand flies out of my hand and into the open hand of a sneering Caledon. "What the-"

He wags his finger. "Tsk, tsk. We can't have you apparating away can we?" He walks over and grabs my arm aggressively. "We have so much catching up to do…"

_POP!_

Suddenly I'm back in the manor from my dream. I wrench my arm free from his grip and turn to him with narrowed eyes. "How did you find me?"

He sneers at me once again while angrily grabbing my arm again. "You didn't think you were the only one who had dreams, did you? Although mine are more voluntary than yours…"

He drags me down a corridor rapidly. I do my best to slow him down, but he tugs me along every time I try to stop. "What the hell do you want with me Caledon?"

He throws me into a dark room, causing me to lose my balance and stumble in, and glowers at me. "All in good time, little fireball… All in good time…" He slams the door shut and leaves me in the darkness.

**James' POV**

"Guys, it's almost nine… We should probably head home."

I look over to Al and nod. "Yea, you're right." I hop off the swing and turn to Lily with a smile. "Come on flower, hop on."

She sprints over with a grin and jumps on my back. "Let's go!"

I wait for everyone else to get off their swings before I challenge them to a race home. We all line up and Lily referee's the race. "Ready… Set… GO!"

We all take off in a mad dash toward the house, jumping over snow banks and ducking under low hanging tree branches, all while dodging the snowballs we are throwing at each other.

Al makes it to the house first, but I'm a close second. I walk through the door and hear a crashing noise. "WHERE IS SHE?"

I set Lily down and walk around the corner, where I find my dad holding Draco against the wall by his robes. He is glaring at Draco, who looked unfazed by the entire situation. "I told you Potter, I don't know. She never showed up to your house for the meeting. Now if you would-"

Dad releases Draco's robes with an angry grunt. "Damn it Malfoy! How is it I can keep her safe for two years but as soon as I let you take her she goes missing?"

Mum comes over and places a hand on dad's shoulder. "Harry, love, I think we need to take a step back and calm down. Minerva is out there looking for her now… We'll find her… It's going to be alright."

I laugh sarcastically and ball my fists. "No it's not! She's missing! What if Caledon got her?"

Al steps forward and puts a hand on my shoulder and smirks. "If he's got her, then it's guaranteed that she's giving him hell."

"If who has who?" Eli walks in, breathing heavily, followed by the others.

Al removes his hand from my shoulder and turns around. "Ariana is missing…"

I glare at Draco and point at him. "And you better _hope_ we find her…"

I turn around and push past Al an Eli, stomping up the stairs into my room. I slam the door shut and flop down on my bed. "Ariana, where the hell are you?"

**Ari's POV**

I bang my hands on the door angrily. "CALEDON, GET BACK HERE YOU ASSHOLE! I'M NOT FINISHED WITH YOU YET!" I kick the door with a grunt and storm away from the door, running in to what I assume is a railing. "Ow! Shit that hurt!"

I sit back against the railing and let out a sigh. Obviously I'm going to be here for a while, so I might as well make myself comfortable. I lean my head back against one of the bars of the railing and close my eyes. _I need to think of a way out of this…_

Suddenly the door opens and reveals Caledon. I jump up off the floor and bum rush the door. He glares at me and smacks me across the face, sending me staggering backward into a wall. "Sit down! You're time with me will come soon enough…"

He crosses the room and I hear muffled struggles coming from the opposite corner of the room then a strangles scream. Caledon comes back from the corner with something in his hand. He shoots another glare at me then leaves the room, the door shutting with a resounding thud.

I get up off the floor, still holding the spot on my face that Caledon hit, and walk over to the corner where he had been only moments ago. As soon as I get over there, I gasp loudly. "What the hell?" I see a bald man with patchy eyebrows, cuts and bruises covering his exposed body. He is cowering in the corner, pressed against the wall in the fetal position whimpering. I crouch down and extend a hand toward him, which he cringes away from. "Quenby Caledon?"

**This is where things are going to get a bit twisted... I hope you can keep up! :P**

**I want to thank the two people who have constantly taken the time to leave reviews for each chapter: BananaLollypop and Rissi18! Thank you guys. I appreciate your consistent support with this story. :)**

**I hope you lovely readers enjoyed this chapter! I would love to hear what you thought about it!**

**Thank you to everyone who has read this story and stuck with it! :)**

**-Tx**


	22. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 22**

**Ari's POV**

"Quenby Caledon?" I poke him on the leg and he squeals lightly.

"H-how do you know m-me?"

I let out a scoff that makes him wince. "Are you aware that there is someone running around out there who looks _just_ like you who is trying to lead wizards into a war with American muggles?"

He shakes his head. "T-that would e-explain why he's b-been stealing my eyebrow h-h-hair…"

"So he's using a polyjuice potion?" I furrow my eyebrows together and frown. "Wait… if _you're_ the _real_ Quenby Caledon, then who is _he_?"

He shakes his head again. "I… I don't know… I only w-worked at the Ministry f-for a month before I w-was kidnapped…"

I take a seat on the floor, crossing my legs, and tap my chin. "Okay… Tell me about the day you were kidnapped."

He shakes his head once again, which leads me to believe that is the only thing he knows how to do. "I d-don't even know your name…"

I roll my eyes and sigh. "Sorry… I'm Ariana Brighton; also known as one of the objects of your… well, his… um, fake Caledon's hatred."

He sits up a bit. "I still d-don't t-t-trust you…"

I shrug my shoulders and walk back over to the railing I was sitting at before. I sit back down and lean my head back against the railing again. "Hm… Well that's too bad, because I think I might have a way out of here."

He sits up all the way and looks at me intently. "Wait, what?"

I push a button on my watch and light it up so I can see the time. _12:08 pm…_

I set the alarm on it for 9:15 and close my eyes. "I can't do anything right now, but soon…" I take a deep breath and will myself asleep.

(Break)

I am awoken by a faint beeping coming from under my stomach. I open my eyes and realize I'm no longer sitting against the railing, but now lying on my stomach on the ground. I look at my watch and smile. _9:15pm…_

I turn the alarm off and sit up with a stretch. "Hey Quenby… You awake?"

He grunts as he jerks awake. "W-what's going on?"

"Nothing much… Just working on getting us out of here is all." I close my eyes again and clear my mind, only focusing on James, who is probably in his room right now.

I'm not really sure this is going to work, I haven't done it since I was little, but I figure if it works and gets us out of here then it's worth a shot.

Quenby clears his throat. "I-I don't want to sound r-rude, but are y-you going-"

I hold up my hand and shush him. "I'm going to need complete silence. But first, do you know what building this is?"

"It's M-Malfoy manor, of course…"

I open my eyes again and frown. "MALFOY manor? You're sure it's MALFOY manor?"

He nods. "Yes. The Malfoy's used to live here, but after the wizarding war, Draco Malfoy and his family left here and never returned. It's been abandoned for years."

"Okay. Thank you. Now complete silence please…" I close my eyes again and take a deep breath, focusing only on James again.

**James' POV**

I get up off my bed and begin pacing in front of my bed, trying to think of any places Ariana might be. Suddenly my vision blurs and everything becomes a bright white. "What the hell?"

I reach out to balance myself on my bed and pull myself onto the mattress.

_As soon as I'm flat on my bed, the white fades and I see my room again, but this time Ariana is sitting on the ground in front of me. She looks at me and grins. "Oh yay! It worked! Hey Jamie…"_

_I push myself up into a sitting position and look at her with wide eyes. "Ari, how did you get back here?"_

_She laughs and stands up, walking over to sit on my bed. "I'm not actually here, Jamie. You remember all those times I saw Caledon?"_

_I smirk at her. "All those times? It's happened, what, three times?"_

_She rolls her eyes and continues. "Well this is what was really happening."_

"_Okay… Well then where are you?"_

_She shakes her head. "Nope, I'm not going to tell you that yet. I can't have you rushing over here now. Not when I'm this close to fake Caledon…"_

"_So Caledon does have you!" I grab her chin and look her face over. "Did he hurt you? I'll kill him if he hurt you."_

_She shakes her head with another laugh. "I'm sure you will, but it's nothing I can't handle. Honest. He does have my wand though… Now, I need you to tell your dad that Caledon has me. I'm going to do something to get out of this room so I can see how many Death Eaters fake Caledon has here before I let you lot know where I am. I wouldn't want you coming to save us, only to be killed by a houseful of Death Eaters."_

"_Us?"_

_She grins. "Long, mostly interesting story that you probably won't believe unless you see…"_

_I shake my head at her. "How can you be so calm? That man is your enemy!"_

_She shrugs her shoulders calmly. "I actually find this a bit exciting… I'm so close to finding out what fake Caledon's secret is…"_

"_You're a nutter, you know that? And why do you keep calling him fake Caledon?"_

_She grins again. "I'll tell you when I get back." She stops for a minute and then plants a kiss on my cheek. "I have to go, but I will definitely be back once I've figured out how guarded this place is…" She closes her eyes and my world goes white again for a moment. _

I open my eyes and sigh as I find myself lying on my bed. I sigh as I swing my legs over my bed and hop off.

I open my door and march down the stairs into the dining room. I find dad, mum, Professor McGonagall and Draco sitting at the table. I lean against the door frame and sigh. "I'm just going to cut to the chase here… Ariana is in fact with Caledon."

Dad looks at me skeptically. "How do you know?"

I roll my eyes at him, as if the answer is obvious. "She told me. She didn't tell me where she was at though. She said she wants to see how well the place is protected before she lets us go there to help her."

Draco smirks at me. "And how did she tell you these things?"

I open my mouth to explain, but close it again when I realize I don't actually know _how _to explain it. "She, um… I'm not really sure how to explain how she told me… She said it was the same way she was seeing Caledon." I look around at everyone and see they wear the same confused expressions on their faces. I shrug my shoulders. "I'm just telling you everything she told me." I push myself off from the door frame and walk back to my room to go to sleep.

**Ari's POV**

I open my eyes and look over at Quenby. "Alright real Caledon, I've officially started working on getting out of here. So, if you want to end up leaving with me, then you're going to have to tell me about the day you were kidnapped."

He flinches as I move to sit next to him. "O-okay… I-I was w-walking to my office w-when-"

The door opens up and someone else is tossed into the room by Cass. "We're done with you... For now…"

The person crashes to the floor, but I ignore them. I jump up off the floor and walk toward the door. "Hey asshole, I have to pee."

He sneers at me and points to a corner. "It's right over there."

I make a dramatic gagging noise and shake my head. "That's disgusting, even _real_ prisoners get actual toilets. Either you find me a real bathroom or I tell Caledon that you've been sneaking your _other_ prisoner over there extra food rations. Your choice…"

He glowers at me. "I've done no such thing…"

I shrug my shoulders with a smirk. "If he's already questioning your loyalty, who do you think he'll believe?"

He violently grabs my arm and drags me out of the room while mumbling under his breath. I smirk to myself as I see his wand loosely hanging out of his pocket. I stealthily grab it and conceal it behind me as he throws me into a green marbled bathroom. "You have five minutes…"

I laugh. "It's a good thing I only have to pee or this could be an issue!"

He glares at me and slams the door shut. As soon as the door shuts I look around for a window. It's not too difficult to find it and, once I do, I open it up as wide as I can. I then pull out Cass's wand and stand back against the wall then turn myself into a weathered wooden chair. A few minutes pass and the door bursts open. _What would he have done if I had still been peeing when he came in? What a sicko…_

He looks around the bathroom angrily and, when his eyes fall on the open window, he lets out a loud, angry grunt. He reaches for his wand but his fingers only grab air. His eyes widen and his mouth falls open. "Shit!" He runs from the bathroom quickly, almost tripping over one of my legs as he does. _If only I had been out a few feet further…_

A few moments later Caledon bursts into the bathroom, led by a frightened looking Cass. Caledon looks at the window then turns angrily to Cass, grabbing him by his cloak and slamming him into the wall a few feet away from me. "WHERE IS SHE?"

Cass looks around nervously. "W-well my Lord… She said she had to pee… s-so I-"

Caledon slams him against the wall again, earning a grunt of pain from Cass. "Are you really that dense?" He releases Cass, causing him to fall to the ground, and shrugs his shoulders, turning back to the window. "No matter… I still have her wand. She can't have gotten far…"

Cass clears his throat awkwardly. "Actually, my Lord…"

Caledon turns around again, pure rage apparent on his face. "What now?"

Cass shifts uncomfortably on the floor. "…She _may_ have taken my wand before she escaped…"

Caledon clenches his teeth then relaxes. "You have failed me one to many times…" He quickly pulls out his wand and points it at Cass.

Cass's eyes widen as he puts his hands up to protest. "My Lord, please don't! Pl-"

"Avada Kedavra!"

The bathroom fills with a green glow as the spell leaves Caledon's wand and hits Cass full on. The color leaves his face as his eyes roll back and he slumps onto the ground in a lifeless mass.

Caledon puts his wand away and storms out of the bathroom without even sparing a glance back. He stops in the doorway and slowly turns around, looking at the window through narrowed eyes. "I'm coming for you little fireball…"

Suddenly he begins changing. He begins growing hair and his features become more familiar. He groans angrily and storms out of the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind him.

I return myself to normal and grab Cass's robe and mask. I pull the robe up over my head and grimace as I put the mask over my face. I open the door just a crack and peek out to see if anyone is in the corridor. Once I see that the coast is clear, I sneak out of the bathroom and down the corridor. I pass by only two Death Eaters in the process, which is encouraging. I locate the room I was being kept in and memorize its location.

I walk back to the bathroom and shut the door, jamming another chair under the door handle as a precaution. I know it won't stop anyone from coming in, but it will at least slow them down. I take a seat on the floor, crossing my legs and sitting erect, and close my eyes, concentrating only on James again.

**James' POV**

_I press my body to my broom and race after the snitch, my Puddlemere United uniform flapping in the wind. I can see the seeker for the Holyhead Harpies next to me, racing toward the snitch in front of us. I flash a smirk at him and press my body tighter to my broom. "See ya, loser..." I speed forward and grab the snitch before it can fly away._

_The crowd around us cheers loudly, the Puddlemere fans jumping to their feet with excitement. I fly to the ground and hop off my broom, holding up the snitch with a grin. I look around at my fans, at the screaming fan girls, and roll my eyes with a laugh. After being praised and congratulated by my teammates I walk to the locker room, but not before looking into the crowd and giving them a wink._

_Suddenly I hear, "You __would__ dream about winning a quidditch match… And all these fans! Do these girls know what a git you are?"_

_I look over at Ariana with a smirk. "Yes, I would. And no, they don't. You're the only one whose been graced with that knowledge."_

_She rolls her eyes with a laugh as she places a hand on her chest. "Oh I'm so lucky…"_

"_Are you ready to tell me where you are being kept?"_

_She nods seriously then looks at the ground. "Yes, but you'll need to hurry. Caledon is gone but I don't know how long he will be gone. Oh, and there are going to be two extra people who need help."_

_I grab her shoulders, earning boo's from a group of girls in the stands. I had completely forgotten where I was… "Ari, WHERE ARE YOU?"_

_She gives me a faint smile and a sigh. "I'm being kept at Malfoy manor in the fourth room from the entrance."_

"_W-what? Malfoy manor?"_

_She pats me on the cheek and smirks. "I'll see you soon, git." She closes her eyes and disappears._

I sit upright in my bed and look around. "Dad is never going to believe me…" I grab my wand and hop out of bed. I run down the stairs to my parent's room. I stand outside the door and take a deep breath before walking in. "Dad I know where Ariana is."

I don't hear a response so I flip on a light switch and grunt. I look to the bed and see mum and dad curled up next to each other. I grimace at the sight before I jump on the bed. Mum is the first to react to my sudden mounting of their bed. She abruptly sits upright and gasps. "What's wrong?"

I sigh. "Mum, I know where Ariana is, but we need to hurry…"

She kicks dad in the leg and smirks at him when he wakes up. "Go get Minerva and Draco. We're going to find Ariana."

**Ari's POV**

I open my eyes and grimace as I look over and see Cass's body. I put his robe and mask back on him and stash Cass's wand in my back pocket before I make my way back to my temporary prison. I make a large 'X' on the outside of the door before I walk back in and shut the door behind me. I walk over to real Caledon and take a seat. "Help is on the way. They should be here shortly."

I hear a cough-filled laugh from across the room. "Ariana? What have you done now?"

I whirl my head around with a gasp. "Professor Longbottom?"

He laughs again, which leads to a coughing fit. "The one and only."

I get up off the ground and run over to him. I grab his arm and help him up. "Yea, well you can never be too sure… What are you doing here?"

He shrugs his shoulders as we walk over to real Caledon. "Cass caught me spying on him and Caledon. He kicked my ass and tossed me in here."

I pat him on the shoulder. "Well help will be arriving so-"

The door to our room opens and reveals a very angry looking Death Eater. He glares and points at me. "_YOU!_ What have you done?"

I shrug my shoulders with a smirk. "Oh, you know. A bit of this, a bit of that..." I hear an explosion behind him and my smirk grows into a grin. "Why?"

He walks toward us with his wand drawn. "You little bitch…"

I pull out Cass's wand and point it at the Death Eater. "Bring it on, asshole."

For a moment we just circle each other but I shoot my spell at him as soon as I see him readjust his stance into one for fighting. We both dodge each other's spells, so we shoot another spell at each other. My spell hits him; knocking the wand from his hand, but not before his spell leaves his wand and hits the wall next to me, shattering the wall into bits of dust and debris. I look at the Death Eater with wide eyes.

Suddenly the Death Eater collapses in an unconscious heap in front of me, revealing James, who is standing behind him in the doorway with his wand pointed in front of him. "She's in here dad!"

I turn to real Caledon and Neville with a smirk. "You two ready to get out of here?"

Harry, Ginny, McGonagall, and Draco all run in with their wands pointed defensively. Draco looks around the room with a frown. "I haven't been here in a long time…"

James walks over with a smirk. He grabs my arm and says, "Well hello gorgeous. Long time no see!"

I roll my eyes with a laugh. "Shut up and get us home before Caledon gets back." I gesture to Neville and real Caledon. "Get them out of here first."

James looks at real Caledon and frowns, raising his wand up and pointing it at his face. "What the hell Ariana? I thought we were avoiding him?"

I push his hand down and shake my head. "James, I don't have time to explain. We need to get out of here now!"

He looks at me skeptically then nods. He gestures for everyone to come over and help. Ginny grabs Neville, Harry hesitantly grabs real Caledon, and James grabs me, while Draco and McGonagall stay behind to make sure nobody follows us.

We arrive at the house and Ginny immediately pulls me away from James and into a tight, almost suffocating, hug. "I swear to Merlin, if you _ever_ do that to me again, I'll find you just so I can kill you!" I return her hug with a grin.

She releases me and I have just enough time to take one deep breath before I'm pulled into another tight hug by Harry. "We're so glad you're alright."

I let out a laugh and wrap my arms around him. "Me too. Thanks for coming to save me."

He releases me with a smile. "Anytime… Now, would you care to tell us what happened?"

I shake my head. "Not yet. We need to get real Caledon some food and both Neville and real Caledon are going to need some medical attention."

Harry shakes his head this time. "I'm not helping him. We can't trust him."

R.C., or Real Caledon, clears his throat. "Um… I-I'm s-standing right here…"

I look at Harry and Ginny with a pleading expression. "You may not trust him, but you trust me and I say he's fine. Please help him… We'll explain everything once he's been taken care of." I look over to R.C. "Won't we?"

He nods his head eagerly, so Ginny takes him and Neville into the dining room to be patched up, and Harry follows close behind her. Once his parents are gone, James grabs my arm and pulls me into a hug. I shake my head with a laugh as I return his hug, wrapping my arms around his waist and leaning my head against his chest. "I was gone for what, twelve hours? You lot are acting like I was gone for weeks!"

He shakes his head with a laugh. "Um, no. You were _kidnapped_ for twelve hours, by someone who has been trying to kill you for two years. So forgive us if we were a little worried…"

I look up at him with a smirk. "Well, I guess I can forgive you. But only because you asked so nicely."

He rolls his eyes and laughs. "Remind me, why did we save you?"

My smirk grows a bit as I stifle a laugh. "I'm the only one who puts up with you, remember?"

He nods with a grin. "Oh, that's right… Lucky me."

Ginny walks out and clears her throat. I turn around and see she has a smirk on her face as she looks at us. "If you two are finished, Quenby and Neville are ready to talk. Would you two care to join us?"

**Did this chapter help clear anything up for you lovely readers? I know I switched POV's a lot in this chapter... I hope it doesn't confuse anyone! I will be clearing up any lingering questions about real and fake Caledon in the next chapter, so just be patient with me.**

**I have quite the ending for this story. I'm pretty stoked to write it! It's going to blow your minds! :P**

**As always, I would like to thank all my readers who left a review for the last chapter, those who added this story to their alerts, and those who just read it! :)**

**I would also love to hear yalls thoughts and opinions on this chapter! :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx :)**


	23. Chapter 23

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**P.S. I do want to warn yall that Ariana drops the f-bomb twice at the end of this chapter... Just wanted to let you know in case that might offend anyone.**

**Chapter 23**

**Ari's POV**

James and I walk into the dining room and sit down at the table.

R.C. is sitting on one side of me scarfing down a big plate of eggs, toast, and fruit while Neville is sitting next to him looking at him like he's a nutter. Harry and Ginny are on the opposite side of the table, sitting directly across from R.C. and Neville while James is sitting next to me, looking at R.C. with disgust.

I clear my throat and shoot a firm look over to R.C., who catches my hint and sets his utensils down. "R.C., how about you start?"

He nods and clears his throat. "W-well I s-started work at the M-Ministry in May, and I w-was kidnapped from there a m-month later… I was on my w-way to m-my office w-w-when it happened. He c-came out of a d-dark office and s-s-stupefied me… The n-next thing I know, I-I'm waking up i-in someone's b-b-basement being t-tortured. There was a m-man in a mask r-r-ripping out my eyebrows a-and putting them into a cauldron…"

James leans over to me and whispers, "Man, Caledon may be his lookalike, but he really didn't study his speech patterns or mannerisms at all!"

I try to hide my laugh as I whisper, "Can you blame him? Would you be intimidated by a jumpy man with a stutter? This Caledon is so cute…"

He smirks at me. "Does this mean I have some competition?"

I look at him and smirk. "Oh he wins every time, no contest."

He rolls his eyes and stifles a laugh. I elbow him in the side playfully as I try to concentrate on what R.C. is saying. "…I was in that room for a-almost two y-y-years! He m-moved me from the b-basement t-t-to that room in Malfoy m-manor i-in August, I b-believe."

Harry nods thoughtfully. "Do you know who _he_ is?"

R.C. shakes his head as he shovels another large bite of food into his mouth. Just then, Draco and McGonagall apparate into the house and walk into the dining room, sitting down next to Ginny and Harry.

Ginny looks at me and waits for me to talk, but I don't know what she wants to hear so I just sit in my chair and look at her blankly. Harry tries to suppress his laughter as he says, "Ariana, what happened to you? How did he get you?"

I shrug my shoulders. "He was waiting for me. I apparated to your old manor and sat down to wait for Draco. He came out from behind one of the walls and took my wand… He still has that by the way! I stole and still have Cass's wand, but it doesn't feel right in my hand… Probably because I didn't properly win the wand from him, I just stole it from his pocket…" I pull out the wand and look at it. "Now that he's dead, I'm never going to get this stupid wand to work for me…"

Everyone looks at me with wide eyes and open mouths. James looks at me seriously. "Ari, you didn't… kill him, did you?"

I roll my eyes at him and scoff loudly. "NO I didn't _kill_ him! Caledon did!"

They all look at R.C. and I scoff again. "NOT HIM! The fake Caledon!"

Draco looks at me with a sigh. "How do you know?"

I look at the table as the events replay in my mind. "Because I saw it happen…"

James grabs my hand. "What do you mean you saw it happen?"

"Fake Caledon thought I escaped with Cass's wand, when I was really just transfigured into a chair in the room. I only wanted to trick them into thinking I'd left… Obviously I did a better job than I thought because both fake Caledon and Cass believed it. Caledon got extremely upset and killed Cass. I was there… I was in the room when he killed him. Cass was murdered a few feet to my right, that's what I mean when I say I saw it happen. He may have been an absolutely horrid person, but he didn't deserve to die…"

Draco taps his chin thoughtfully. "Wait, how did Caledon know that you were going to be at the manor?"

Harry glares at Draco and mutters something about "that dishonest bastard Malfoy…"

I suppress the urge to laugh at Harry as I answer Draco. "He, um… He said he dreamt it? His exact words were: 'You didn't think you were the only one who had dreams, did you? Although mine are more voluntary than yours…' so I'm assuming that's how he found out."

I look around at the adults and realize they are looking at each other awkwardly, which probably means they are trying to think of a way to get rid of me and James. I yawn loudly and stretch dramatically. "Well, I'm exhausted… Aren't you, Jamie? We should head up to bed." I get up from the table and leave the room, laughing when I hear James add "Not together, dad!" before he walks out of the dining room, shutting the door behind him.

He runs into me at the stairs and glowers at me. "You're a prat…"

I block his path up the stairs and smirk at him. "I'm not sure what you mean, but you know you can't stay mad at me."

He rolls his eyes with a laugh. "Prat… So are you really going to bed or are you going to go listen to them?"

I look at the door to dining room longingly as I shake my head. "Although I really want to know what's going on, I really am exhausted… And I have a feeling they are going to tell me what's going on tomorrow, so I'm probably going to just go to sleep."

He nods and points up the stairs. "Alright well we have to make a few detours first, so let's go."

I slump my shoulders and frown. "Jamie, I'm tired! You weren't tortured all day, you don't know…"

He raises an eyebrow at me and smirks. "Neither were you, Ari…"

"Not true! I was kept in a small room with a smelly bathroom in the corner! That's a bit torturous…"

He rolls his eyes and turns around, exposing his back to me. "Hop on, you big baby."

I jump onto his back with a grin. "If you insist! Who are we going to see first?"

He laughs as he wraps his arms under my legs and walks up the stairs. "We're going to go see Eli and Bri first. Although Freddie will probably be with Bri, so we're really going to go see Eli, Bri and Freddie."

"Alright." I rest my chin on his shoulder and close my eyes as he ascends the stairs. I can hear a door open and James say something, but I'm practically asleep already.

"_How dare you run away, little fireball…"_

_The scene begins to change into the dining room of Grimmauld Place, but I clench my fists and scream, "NO!"_

_The table from the dining room fades and the scene changes to the room I was trapped in for twelve hours. I take a seat on the floor and frown. "What's with the mask, coward?"_

_He steps out of the shadows with a cackle. He has light, shaggy brown hair that lightly grazes over the silver mask he is wearing. "I want you to bring back Quenby Caledon."_

_I bat my eyelashes innocently and feign cluelessness. "What? I thought __you__ were Quenby Caledon?"_

_A deep growl emanates from his throat as steps toward me angrily. "Don't play coy with ME little fireball! I KNOW you have him! And I want him back…"_

_I shake my head with a smirk. "Not going to happen, faker. Who are you, really? Why don't you man up and take your mask off?"_

_He growls again and takes another step toward me. "You WILL give him back to me…"_

_I smirk again. "Does this put a hitch in your plans?_

_He points his finger and me and snarls. "GIVE HIM BACK!"_

_I let out a laugh. "Or what?"_

_He steps forward again and points his wand at me angrily. "I have my ways of getting what I want…"_

_I stand up and get right in front of him, pushing his wand out of the way, and glare at him as I poke him in the chest. "Hopefully it's not fear because I'm definitely not scared of you…"_

_He shakes his head violently and shoves me back away from him. The move was unexpected so I lose my balance and fall to the ground, my butt hitting the ground hard and my back slamming into the iron railing behind me. I wince as the railing comes in contact with my back but quickly recover when I see that the wince makes fake Caledon laugh. He points his wand at me again and cackles. "Oh it's not fear…" He waves his wand and growls out, "Crucio!"_

_The spell hits me before I even have time to react, sending a searing wave of pain coursing through my body. It feels as though there are dozens of hot knives being plunged into my body all at the same time. I clench my teeth together to keep any cries of pain contained as my back arches away from the railing behind me. My vision is beginning to blur and I'm starting to see small spots dance in front of me as the pain continues to flow through my body. I can hear him cackling as he continues to send fresh surges of pain through me. "Are you going to give him back?"_

_I shake my head with a breathy laugh. He growls again and crouches down so he's in my face, his hot breath hitting me in the face. "You aren't slowing me down at all. Quite the contrary, actually. But you __will__ regret this… You might want to make sure you watch the news today… Should be around eleven in the morning your time…"_

I abruptly sit upright and look around at my surroundings. "When did I get in my bed?" I lie back down and try to fall back asleep, but my mind is too active for that to happen. _Who is fake Caledon really?_

(Break)

The sun has barely risen over the horizon when I roll out of bed. I look over at the clock. _8:55 am…_

I rub my tired eyes and grab Cass's wand as I take a deep breath. I have been avoiding apparating with Cass's wand since I got it. I'm not sure what will happen if I do, which is why I didn't apparate away from Malfoy manor when I first snagged his wand. "You have to do it sooner or later Ari… You can't be scared forever…" I take another deep breath and concentrate.

Next thing I know, I'm standing in the kitchen. A grin spreads across my face as I realize I've reached my desired destination. I grab a bowl out of the cabinet but drop it with a scream when I hear "You couldn't sleep either?"

Draco comes into the kitchen carrying a mug and laughs as he waves his wand over the shattered remains of the bowl, reassembling it and setting it back on the counter. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

I shrug my shoulders nonchalantly as I grab the bowl off the counter. "You didn't startle me. I drop a bowl onto the floor every morning."

He laughs again as he sets his mug down and grabs a bowl from the cabinet. "Oh! Well in that case, sorry for interrupting you."

I grab a box of cereal and pour it into my bowl, then hand the box to Draco. "I guess I can forgive you, but only because you apologized so nicely."

He takes the box and pours some into his bowl, then puts it away and grabs some milk. "That's very kind of you." He pours some milk into his bowl then passes it to me.

I take the milk and use it then put it away. We both sit down at the table and I smirk at him. "What can I say? I'm a kind person."

"What are you doing up at this hour? Don't most teens sleep until one in the afternoon?"

I stare at my cereal bowl. "Couldn't sleep…"

Draco nods absentmindedly. "Nightmares can have that effect…" I nod my agreement and continue to eat my cereal. Draco doesn't look like someone who would have the slightest idea about nightmares, but I'm sure people could say the same thing about me and, since I don't know his past, I'm not going to question him.

He takes a drink from his mug and looks at me. "Do you want to talk about it?"

I let out a sigh and set my spoon down. "Talking about it won't change anything. It won't help me to forget and it won't get rid of the fear it's caused…"

He takes another drink and shrugs. "You're right, but I might be able to help you figure them out. I used to have nightmares, and I'm sure if I had talked with someone about them, I wouldn't have gone down the path I did."

I look at him quizzically. "What path was that?"

He rolls up his sleeve with a sigh and holds out his exposed forearm to me. "What do you see?"

I grab his forearm and examine it, running my hands over the smooth skin curiously. "A forearm…"

He nods. "Do you know what I see?" I shake my head, staring intently at his arm. He gingerly rubs his finger over his arm. "I see a constant invisible reminder of my past and what I've done. I see a consistent cause of the dark nightmares I've weathered through. Although you may not see it, I see that cursed dark mark every time I look at my arm..."

I run my fingers over his arm again. "Dark mark? Oh shit… You were a Death Eater…" I drop my hands from his arm and look at him with wide eyes.

He nods again and looks at the table. "It sort of ran in the family… My father was a Death Eater for a long time. I was sixteen when he got arrested… Voldemort demanded my service in exchange for my father's failure. I had spent my entire childhood thinking I wanted to be a Death Eater, thinking I was ready for the tasks and could handle doing what was asked of me. I was awful to everyone, but especially awful to Harry, Ron and Hermione. I went out of my way to torment them… When I was forced into becoming a Death Eater, I realized I wanted nothing to do with that life. Voldemort told me I had to murderer the Headmaster and, at first, I felt privileged to have been given the task but, as time went on, it began to take its toll on me. The more times I failed, the angrier Voldemort got. I had awful nightmares about him killing me or my mother almost every night. At the beginning of everything, I thought I had made the choice to become a Death Eater but, by the end, I realized I never actually had a choice in the matter. After Harry killed Voldemort I felt so much relief, like I was finally free to make my own decisions. I've spent every day of every year since his death trying to make up for the things I've done…"

I let out a small laugh. "That explains why Harry doesn't seem to fully trust you."

He nods with a weak smile. "Yes, it does…"

We sit in silence for a few minutes, each of us staring at the things in front of us, before I take a deep breath. "Do you know what most seventeen year old girls are busy worrying about? They worry about their outfits for the next day, or if so-and-so likes them, or how to deal with their latest break out. Do you know what _I_ think about? Who's going to die next."

"Okay?"

"Do you know how many times I've watched my friends and family die? My dreams are constantly filled with their deaths. I don't sleep anymore because, when fake Caledon isn't invading my dreams, all I can see is them dying repeatedly. And when I'm awake, it's all I can think about. Well, that and the fact that I don't want to add anyone else to that list. I'm bloody angry with fake Caledon for ripping apart six different families and I'm angry with myself for being partially responsible for ripping apart all of those families. So, to recap, I'm ALWAYS angry and ALWAYS sad and I'm not allowed to show it."

He looks at me questioningly. "Why not?"

I let out a cynical laugh and throw my hands up. "Because it seems like EVERYONE is counting on ME to help them through this. I feel like everyone expects me to just know what to do, but I have NO idea what I'm doing! Someone is going to DIE when we fight fake Caledon and there's no guarantee that it's going to be him! I'm so angry and sad and… scared! I'm so bloody terrified that I can't do this! I'm just one person! What if I can't beat him? What happens then? There are so many lives at stake, what if we can't figure out who he is? What if I fail? Then all those people that I CONSTANTLY think about will have sacrificed themselves for NOTHING and tons of innocent American muggles are going to die!" I can feel myself starting to cry so I place my head in my hands and shake my head with an angry grunt. "What the hell is wrong with me?"

He shakes his head with a laugh. "Are you sure you're only seventeen? You worry like an old person…"

I wipe my face with the back of my hand and chuckle. "You sound like my brother."

He gets up from the table with his bowl and grabs my bowl then walks into the kitchen and places them in the sink. I get up and follow him into the kitchen to get some water. I look at the clock and gasp. It's 10:45 am! "Shit! Can you help me wake everyone up? Fake Caledon says we need to watch the news at 11 am!"

He nods. "I'll get the downstairs if you get the upstairs."

I nod to him and run up the stairs. I bang on James' door then open it and yell "Downstairs in five minutes! It's a fake Caledon emergency!"

I repeat that process with everyone else's door then run back downstairs as fast as I can. I run into the living room and find almost everyone in there. Eli frowns at me as he rubs his eyes. "What the hell is going on?"

I grab the remote and turn the TV on. "I told fake Caledon that we aren't going to give him back real Caledon, so he that I'm going to pay and told me that we need to watch the news at eleven. What time is it?"

"10:58"

I toss the remote to James. "Thanks Jamie. Can you find the channel?" I walk into the kitchen to grab a glass to get the water I wanted from before. I hear James call for me, saying he thinks he found the channel, then I hear Harry yell for me with a panicked tone. I grab my water glass and walk out to the living room.

The regular wizard news is playing on the TV when I get out there. I stand behind the couch and tensely wait for something to happen. Suddenly a tall, thin man with shaggy, light brown hair and angry brown eyes is standing on the TV.

The water glass falls out of my hand and clatters to the floor as I realize who's in front of me. His hair may be longer, but I would recognize that face anywhere. "What the fuck?"

I stare at the TV with my mouth agape and tears running down my face as Eli reaches up and grabs my arm. "I thought he was dead…"

I look at him with wide eyes. "I did too. I saw his fucking body!"

James looks at both of us questioningly. "Ari, who is that?"

"My dad…"

**Oho! Hows that for a twist? Did any of yall see that coming?**

**I hope yall enjoyed the chapter! I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions about the chapter! :)**

**As always, I would like to extend a thanks to all the people who left reviews, all the people who added the story to their favorites, and to those who read my story! I love yall! :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx :)**


	24. Chapter 24

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 24**

**Ari's POV**

I continue to stare at the TV as Eli grips my hand tightly. Brittney is standing next to me with her hand on my shoulder and I can feel Harry staring at me. Everyone else is staring at the TV intently.

My dad sneers at the camera and says, "Hello wizarding population. I'm sure you are all wondering why I am interrupting your favorite TV shows right now. The answer is simple: I am recruiting. You see, I am going to be waging a war on the American muggles and I could use as many people fighting with me as possible. Why American muggles, you ask? Because, they have been killing American wizards simply for existing! WE are the superior ones in this scenario and I intend on making them realize that. Join me, Lord Brighton, and let the American muggles know that we will not go quietly!"

Applause erupts around him as he raises his hands up in victory. James looks up at me with a frown. "Are you _sure_ that's your dad? Maybe it's just someone who looks like him…"

The applause dies down and my dad narrows his eyes cynically at the camera as he says, "And to my daughter, Ariana Elizabeth Brighton, I just wanted to say I'm so glad you decided to join me in this…"

I look at James with clenched fists. "I'm positive that's him…"

Draco gives a low whistle before he says, "And I thought _my_ dad was bad…"

I narrow my eyes at the TV and clench my teeth together. "I hate him so much…"

Ginny looks around the room with a worried expression. "Did anyone else notice what he just did?"

I nod angrily. "I know _exactly_ what he did… He just made his fight sound like a worthy cause. 'Let's help save our wizarding brethren from the terrible American muggles.' Now wizards will join him because they think they are saving our kind rather than wiping out the innocent muggles…" I glare at the TV for another second before I grunt angrily. "I need some air." I stomp out of the living room and out the front door, slamming the door shut behind me.

As soon as my feet hit the sidewalk, my momentum picks up to the point where I'm running away from Grimmauld place. I don't really know where I'm running to, I just know I need to get away, so I let my feet carry me down the sidewalk rapidly. Once I get close enough to see the cemetery, I realize that I really _had_ known where I was going all along. I run over to the familiar headstone and take a seat in front of it. I take a deep breath and close my eyes. "Hey Carter… You'll never guess what just happened…"

**James' POV**

"Dad, shouldn't someone go after her? We just got her back… What if someone takes her again? I mean, she _is_ out there alone right now…"

Dad shakes his head. "James, she just found out that the father she thought was dead for two years is not only alive, but the person who has killed most of her friends and has been trying to kill her for the past two years. She needs some time alone."

I look at the TV with a frown. "So that's her dad, huh? I wonder if they got along…"

Eli and Brittney both scoff at the same time. Eli shakes his head with a frown. "Hell no they didn't! He had days where he was nice to her, but those were few and far between. Ari used to spend weeks at our house to get away from her dad!"

I look at him quizzically. "Why did she need to get away?"

Brittney laughs angrily. "Because he was king of the assholes! After her mom died, he went off the deep end, punishing her for anything and everything. But Ariana continued to go back to him because her only goal in life was to make her dad proud. She just wanted him to accept her the way she was, but that never happened, which is why she is so competitive. She always figured if she was the best, then he would like her. It was sickening…"

Draco shakes his head. "You lot really just don't understand…"

I look over at him angrily. "And you do?"

He nods solemnly. "Actually yes, I do. But that's not what we need to be focusing on right now. Potter, what are you going to do when she goes back to Hogwarts? She's _going _to be targeted now that people think she's a Death Eater bent on killing off American muggles…"

Dad shrugs his shoulders. "I think she can handle it. She's a tough girl and she's been through much worse than this."

Draco looks down at his hands with a sad expression, which makes me think he knows something we don't. I speak up, keeping my eyes on Draco. "I'll be sure to watch over her."

Freddie nods firmly. "She's my best mate. I'm with her until the end."

Al and Landen look at each other and nod. "Us too."

Eli and Brittney laugh. "We've been with her since day one and nothing is going to change."

Dad looks at all of us with a smile. "I'm very proud of _all_ of you. This isn't going to be easy for any of you but, if you stick together, I believe you all can get through this."

Neville stands up with a sigh. "I will be returning to Hogwarts as well, so I'll keep an eye on her as well."

Mum grins at him. "Oh thank you Neville!"

I turn the TV off and sigh. "What are you going to do about Lord Brighton, dad?"

He shakes his head. "There's nothing I _can_ do… This really is up to Ariana."

Draco gets up from his chair abruptly. "I have to go home. Astoria and Scorpius are probably curious as to where I am. Potter, when you're ready for her to learn occlumency, just send her to my house." Dad nods to him and he apparates away.

I look at the door sullenly. "I wonder where she went…"

**Ari's POV**

"…Pretty crazy, right? Who knew that my asshole of a father was really alive and posing as someone else as a Dark Lord? By the way, I'm really sorry I haven't been here to visit you in over a year… It's been a rough year… That's no excuse though! I'm a terrible friend and I'm sorry." I wave Cass' wand in front of the headstone and a wreath appears leaning against the headstone. I place a hand on the headstone and sigh. "I miss you Carter. I'll come see you again once I've dealt with my dad."

I walk out of the cemetery and walk back toward the house, only to realize that I'm not ready to go back yet. So I stop at the park near the house and take a seat on a swing and stare at my shoes. _How the hell did he fool everyone into thinking he was dead? I'm positive he was dead! I pulled his burned body out of the house! Bloody hell, how am I going to kill him? I can't possibly kill him now… I already had reservations with having to kill someone I didn't know, killing my own flesh and blood is going to be next to impossible! What am I going to do now?_

"Do you mind if I sit here?"

I look up from the ground and see a tall boy who looks to be about sixteen or seventeen pointing to the swing next to me. He has short dark brown hair, brown eyes, chocolate colored skin and full lips pulled up into a small smile. I nod and look back at the ground.

"What brings you out here?"

I look at him and let out a laugh. _What __has__ brought me out here?_ "Um… I just had to get away for a bit."

He nods. "Hmm, me too… Was it your mom or your dad?"

My hands tighten around the chains that hold up the swing as I acidly say, "My dad."

He nods again. "Ah. The ever popular daddy issues…"

I smirk at ground. "Yea, something like that."

"Me too. Well, sort of… I was just at my dad's funeral. So it was more like the last daddy issue I'll ever have."

I look up at him and frown. "I'm so sorry. Do you mind if I ask what happened?"

He shakes his head. "Not at all. We were moving from our house in Washington when the house exploded. My mom, sister and I were out getting more boxes when it happened, which is why we're all still here."

I hadn't even noticed that he had an American accent or at least, the lack of an English accent, when he was talking. I look back at the ground. _I wonder if my dad killed his dad…_ "I'm really sorry for your loss."

He looks at me with a smirk. "Hey now, there will be none of that! I came out here to get away from all that!"

I hold up my hands with a laugh. "Sorry, sorry."

He shrugs his shoulders. "S'alright. So what about you?"

_I thought my dad was dead but he is, in fact, very much alive. He's also trying to get a load of wizards to murder innocent American muggles, probably including your dad, just for not being magical._ "Oh you know, just a bit of a disagreement with my dad."

He nods. "Those are the worst. What was it abo-"

"Dom! Dominique!"

He rolls his eyes with a groan. "Ah hell... OVER HERE MOM!"

A woman who looks to be in her thirties jogs over to us. "Dom, you can't just run off like that! There are still people who want to give us their condolences and it's only polite that we accept them."

He rolls his eyes again and gets up off the swing. He looks at me and smiles. "I didn't catch your name…"

"Ari."

"Well, Ari, thank you for the stimulating conversation. It was nice to meet you and good luck with your dad."

I nod my thanks with a smile. "And good luck with the funeral."

He grins at me and walks away with his mum. A few moments pass before I hear a faint "Pop!" from behind the playground area. I roll my eyes and turn around with a smirk and a huff. "I'm pretty sure the point of leaving the house was to be alone…"

Eli pokes his head out from behind the slide. "We just wanted to check on you…"

"We?"

Freddie, Brittney, James, Landen and Al all poke their heads out from behind different spots on the playground with sheepish grins spread across their faces. James walks out first. "We'll leave if you really want to be alone…"

Freddie shakes his head as he walks over and takes a seat on a swing. "I won't! I want to swing!"

I roll my eyes again with a laugh. "Well gee, thanks for being considerate Fred! But I'm doing better now, so you lot can stay."

Everyone races to the remaining four swings as fast as they can and everyone except Al gets a swing. He looks at all of us with a frown. "You lot are a bunch of prats, you know that?"

I get up from my swing with a laugh. "Al, you can have my swing. I'll share with Eli, Landen or James."

Eli laughs loudly. "Why'd you even say me and Landen's names? We _all_ know who you're going to share a swing with!"

I flip him off as I walk over and take a seat on James' lap. He wraps his arms around my waist and laughs. "Was he wrong?"

I shake my head and push my lip out into a pout. "No, but he didn't have to say it out loud…"

Eli clutches his sides as he roars with laughter, which eggs on everyone else and entices a fit of laughter from my so-called friends. After the laughter has died down, we all sit in a still silence. James breaks the silence first. He rests his chin on my shoulder and sighs. "Ari, what are you going to do?"

I shrug my shoulders and plainly say, "I'm going to kill him."

Al looks over at me with wide eyes. "But he's your dad!"

I let out a dark laugh. "Wrong. He's a horrid person and a sorry excuse for a father who doesn't deserve the life he was given."

Landen frowns. "You know, you, Eli and Bri keep saying he was a terrible father, but I still don't see it…"

Eli glares at Landen and scoffs. "You mean you need more proof than the fact that he's trying to murder a bunch of innocent American muggles?"

Landen holds his hands up defensively. "Hey! Calm down, mate. I'm just saying that, although he IS a bad guy, he IS still her dad."

I let out another cynical laugh as I glare at the ground. "If you knew what my childhood was like after my mom died, if you lived through it like the three of us did, you would understand… He was a bloody raging alcoholic and horribly abusive."

James tightens his grip around my waist and tenses up. "He used to hit you?"

I nod with an angry laugh. "Hit, kick, push, throw, curse… You name it, he did it. I could always tell when it was coming, too. It was always after he drank profusely and he would always come looking for me, using the blasted nickname my mum came up with. 'Little fireball… Little fireball… Where are you, little fireball?' I remember the feeling I got in the pit of my stomach every time I heard him say that name… I would crawl under my bed to hide, silently hoping he wouldn't find me. He always did, though. Always…"

Freddie gasps in realization. "Wait, so back in America, in your first dream, he called you little fireball… You didn't figure it out then?"

I shake my head. "Honestly, it never crossed my mind that Caledon could really be my dad. I figured he just had a way of knowing about the things I feared…"

Al clears his throat. "Ari, why didn't you leave?"

I shrug my shoulders. "Because… I thought I deserved it. I had killed my mum and his abuse was my punishment for it. I mean, honestly! If my own dad was convinced that I deserved it, then I was sure that I did because 'father knows best', right?"

He shakes his head angrily. "Well did you at least _tell_ anyone?"

"Not at first… Some rather nosy siblings I knew persistently bothered me about my marks until I finally told them though. They may have been my friends since birth, but they are particularly dense." I look at Brittney and Eli with a smile. They look at each other then return my smile.

Brittney holds up her hand. "I would just like to point out that I had my suspicions, but Ari has always been particularly good at hiding when she is in pain."

My smile fades as I glare at my hands. "He wasn't just a hitter, though. He used to practice dark magic and awful spells on me. As Bri said, I learned how to hide any signs of pain early on. So, when physical abuse didn't give him the results he wanted, he resorted to magic… He found so much joy in the pain he caused…"

James lets out a sigh. "I'm so sorry, Ari…"

I firmly shake my head with a frown. "No. I didn't tell you about this so you could feel sorry for me. I've had enough sympathy to last a lifetime… I told you lot about this so that you could understand that he's _ruthless_… I mean, he was willing to abuse his own daughter! He will have no problem killing any of you… Don't forget that."

Everyone looks at each other uneasily as the harsh reality of our situation sinks in. I clear my throat as I take in their expressions. "Look, you lot don't have to go with me when I fight him. I'm perfectly fine with doing this on my own…"

Eli laughs loudly. "And you said _Bri and I_ were dense!"

Freddie nods his agreement. "Ari, some of us have literally been with you since the beginning of this. If you couldn't get rid of us then, you're not going to get rid of us now."

I roll my eyes at him. "The stakes are much higher this time…"

James laughs cynically. "Tell that to Carter, Bells, Tori, Rach and Logan. The stakes are the same no matter _when _we fight him."

"I guess… I just don't want you guys to feel like you _have _to do this…"

This time Al laughs. "Ari, get it through that thick head of yours! We're with you to the end…"

The others dramatically vocalize their agreements. James nods. "You need us… Don't forget _that_."

I nod with a grin. "Yes sir." I look at the faces of the people around me and sigh. _I hope we're ready for this…_

**Yikes... Pretty intense, right?**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter! I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions about it! :)**

**I also want to say thank you to those who took the time to leave a review for the last chapter, to those who added this story to their alerts, and to all those who read my story! :)**

**Thank yall for your support! :)**

**-Tx**


	25. Chapter 25

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 25**

**Ari's POV**

I let out a yawn and look at my watch. _9:53 am…_

I stretch my arms out to the side and one of my fists connects with something fleshy, so I look next to me and laugh as I realize I just punched James in the face. He opens one eye and smirks at me as he rubs his other eye. "How about you keep those fists of fury to yourself…"

I let out a laugh as I quickly pull my arm back in. "Sorry Jamie! For a second there, I forgot where I was…"

Eli grunts at us. "Seriously? Shut up!"

Yesterday, after we all talked about my dad, we spent the rest of the day at the park. By the time we got back here, it was dark out and almost eleven in the evening. We all decided that we were going to spend the night together. So we gathered all our blankets and pillows up and met in James' room. We sporadically laid our blankets out all over his floor and made ourselves comfortable. Lily even let Padfoot sleep in here with us. He curled up with Al and fell asleep right away.

I roll my eyes at Eli and look at James with a sheepish grin. "Sorry about your eye…"

He rubs his eye again with a laugh and a smirk. "Was it something I said?"

"You're such a baby…" I grab his face and kiss his eye. "That better?"

He shakes his head with a grin. "I think you hit me on the lip too…"

I glare at him with a smirk. "Keep it up and I just might!"

He returns my smirk. "As long as you kiss it better too…"

I open my mouth to give a snide response, but I'm interrupted by Eli sitting up and glaring at James and me. "I swear to Merlin, if you two don't shut the hell up, I'm going to kill you…"

I smirk at Eli. "Oh piss off, you cranky git."

Freddie holds up his hand. "I'll help him!"

I laugh. "You can piss off too!"

Brittney reaches up and grabs his arm, pulling it back down around her with a laugh. "Don't worry Ari. I'll hold him down."

Freddie scoffs as he pulls Brittney in. "Well I won't be putting up much of a fight…"

James laces his fingers through mine and pouts. "My lip still hurts, you know…"

I roll my eyes and laugh. "Well we can't have that now, can we? Come here, you big baby…" I give him a quick kiss on lips and laugh again. "Better?"

Eli jumps up from the ground with his pillow in his hand. "That's it! You two are dead!"

"Eli, you better stay away from me!" I stifle a laugh as I throw my pillow at him. Unfortunately, my pillow misses Eli and hits Al in the face.

Eli stops moving as Al sits up angrily. "Who threw that?"

I look at James and grin. "Landen did…"

Landen sits up and throws his pillow at me. "I did not!"

Eli smacks Landen in the face with his pillow. "I'm the only one who gets to hit Ari with a pillow!"

Brittney throws her pillow and nails Eli in the stomach. "Sit down you jerk!"

Eli hits Brittney with his pillow and laughs. "Lay back down and let the big kids talk, Bri."

Brittney pulls out her wand and waves it at her brother. A barrage of pillows shoots out of her wand and pelt him all over. "What was that about the big kids?"

He tries to shield his body from the pillows but fails miserably. The rest of us get up off the floor and begin hitting Eli with our pillows but that doesn't last long because, after a few minutes of that, we all turn on each other and launch into a large pillow fight. Brittney stands in the corner and shoots pillows at us while the rest of us trudge through the pillows that cover the floor. Al and I team up against James and Landen while Freddie and Eli smacked each other aggressively. Even Padfoot got in on the fight by yanking on Brittney's pant leg as she fired pillows at us.

The bedroom door opens and we all freeze in place when we hear "What the hell is going on in here?"

Al smacks James with the pillow in his hand then looks at the door with a grin. "Sorry Teddy. We were just having a bit of fun."

Teddy gestures around the room and laughs. "Clearly… Can you just get this mess cleaned up before mum or dad comes in?" He points to me. "Ari, dad would like to see you downstairs."

I nod as I drop my pillow. "Thanks, Ted." I look at the others with a smirk as I walk out of the room. "You lot better start cleaning… These are a _lot_ of pillows…"

Eli throws a pillow at the door but I shut the door before the pillow can hit me and laugh. I walk down the stairs and find Harry and Ginny sitting in the living room. As soon as I walk in, Harry begins talking. "Ariana, I want you to go to Malfoy's house today. He's going to teach you occlumency. There won't be any meeting up this time either. You're just going to go straight to his house. I'm sending you over there in fifteen minutes so you better go get ready."

I shake my head firmly. "I hate to be argumentative, but I don't think that is necessary."

He looks at me with wide eyes. "Oh? And why is that?"

"Because Cal… my _dad_ was just trying to figure out where I was before he carried out his plans but, by announcing his plans on TV, he's made it clear that he could care less where I am. He knows that the ball is in my court, if you will, and that if I want to stop him then I'm going to have to find him. He's no longer hunting me, but waiting for me to hunt him."

He looks at me thoughtfully. "Are you sure?"

I laugh maliciously. "Oh I'm sure. I've played enough of his cat-and-mouse games to know how they work…"

Ginny grabs Harry's hand and looks at me sternly. "I want you to go anyways. Just as a precaution…"

I shake my head with a sigh. "Alright, fine."

Harry looks at the clock on the wall. "You have ten minutes to get ready."

I nod to them before I take off up the stairs. I get into my room and grab a red long sleeved shirt out of my closet and pull it over my head. I head into my bathroom and grab my toothbrush and put some toothpaste on it. I quickly brush my teeth while I walk to my dresser and pull out a pair of pants. I continue to brush my teeth as I attempt to pull my pants on. I get my pants to right above my knees when I stumble back and fall on my butt. I try to get up but fall again. "Thon of a bith…"

I angrily kick my pants off and finish brushing my teeth in the bathroom. Once I've finished with my teeth, I walk back out into my room to fight with my pants again. I grab my pants and try to pull them on, hopping around like a rabbit until they are up above my knees again and, once again, I fall onto my butt. "Why the hell are my pants so bloody tight?"

I hear a knock at my door and absentmindedly yell, "Come in!" I continue to stare at my pants in disbelief when I hear my door open, but I don't hear anybody say anything. After a few minutes, I hear Freddie's and Eli's familiar laughter. I look up and see James staring at me with shock written on his face, and Freddie clutching his sides as he laughs uncontrollably while Eli is leaning against the door frame laughing loudly. "What the hell is so funny?"

Freddie stops his laughing with a snort and high fives Eli. "Well, I _was _going to ask why you are sitting on the ground in your knickers, but then I saw the pants! I almost forgot that we shrunk your pants last night!"

"Shrunk? All of them?" My voice goes an octave higher at the last question, which causes Freddie to burst into laughter again. I kick my pants off and stand up, getting right in Freddie's face. I shove my shrunken pants into his chest and glare at him. "Fix my pants, you git!"

He shakes his head with a jovial grin. "No can do. It's an irreversible spell… Plus, the effect it's having on James is priceless! It's not very often James Potter is speechless…"

I roll my eyes and glower at him. "You owe me new pants…"

He holds up his hands defensively and smirks. "Alright, alright! Bri, Eli and I will go get you some new pants today."

I nod to him. "Good. Now what do you three want? Because I'm sure only one of you is enjoying the fact that I'm standing in front of you in my knickers right now…"

Eli grimaces as I remind him of that fact, which makes me smile. After standing in my doorway for what feels like a lifetime, James FINALLY decides to speak. "We um… We wanted to know if you wanted to go visit Rose and Hugo with us today?"

I shake my head as I look at the clock. _I have four minutes left…_

"I would absolutely love to, but I can't. Your parents are making me go to occlumency training with Draco as a 'precaution'. Sorry…" I walk back over to my dresser and pull out one of my Hogwarts uniform skirts. I hold it up and look at Eli and Freddie. "Are you two happy? I have to wear my uniform skirt!"

Eli looks at Freddie and grins. "I'm pretty happy. How about you?"

Freddie nods his agreement. "Oh I'm ecstatic, thank you for asking!"

I roll my eyes at them as I pull the skirt on. "My revenge is going to be swift and severe. A woman scorned and all that…"

I give James a quick peck on the cheek then tuck my wand behind my ear and flip Eli and Freddie off before pushing past them and leaving my room. I braid my hair as I walk down the stairs, almost dropping my wand from behind my ear as I do.

Once I get downstairs, I walk into the living room and sigh. "I'm ready to go when you are, Mister Potter."

He gives Ginny a kiss and gets up off the couch. He holds his arms out to me, which I sourly accept. It only takes a moment for the living room at Grimmauld place to disappear and a very sleek and modern living room to appear in front of us. I release Harry's arm and take a seat on the black couch in front of me. Harry rolls his eyes with a sigh. "Malfoy!"

Draco pokes his head out from a room. "Give me a _moment,_ Potter!"

We wait out in the living room for a few minutes before Draco comes out and joins us. Harry crosses his arms and huffs loudly at him. "What could you have _possibly_ been doing in there, Malfoy?"

Draco smirks. "If you _must_ know, I was using the loo."

Harry scoffs his disgust while I try to stifle my laughter. He looks over at me with another sigh. "Just apparate back to Grimmauld place when you're done here." I give him a nod before he apparates away.

As soon as Harry is gone, I give Draco an apologetic look. "Sorry to interrupt whatever you were doing in there…"

He shakes his head with a smirk. "Oh I really wasn't doing anything. I just enjoy making him wait… He gets so upset!"

I let out a laugh then clasp my hands over my mouth. "That's awful…"

He shrugs his shoulders and chuckles. "Some things never get old, I guess… Now, are you ready to learn occlumency?"

I shrug my shoulders. "I guess…"

He pulls out his wand and looks at me firmly. "Are you ready?"

"What? You aren't going to teach me or give me any tips first?"

He drops his wand and sighs. "Seriously? The best way to learn is by doing. That's how I learned! And my teacher was much crazier than I am…"

I puff out my cheeks and nod, slowly releasing my breath as I do. _I haven't done this in so long… _"Alright… I think I'm ready…"

He raises his wand again so that it's pointing at me and says, "Legilimens!"

"_Little fireball… Where are you little fireball?"_

_CRASH! The sound of glass breaking fills the house. I turn my head to the door when I hear "I'm coming for you little fireball…"_

_My eyes widen as I hear him stumbling up the stairs. I dive under my bed and grab the first sharp thing I can find, which just happens to be a shard from a bottle my dad threw at me last night. I can hear him getting closer so I place the glass shard in my mouth and silently pray that I don't need to use it tonight. I mean, I've only just patched up the wounds from yesterday! I don't need any more…_

_The door to my room swings open wildly as my dad falls into it. "I wonder where my little fireball could be…" He clumsily bends down and looks under the bed with a drunken and toothy sneer. "Found you!"_

_I can feel my stomach tighten up as a small whimper escapes from my throat. He reaches under the bed and grabs my ankle violently, attempting to pull me out me out from my temporary sanctuary. I grab one of the legs of my bed and kick my legs, but he's exposed enough of my body to be able grab my waist and pull me out completely. I wince as he digs his fingers into the cut on my stomach, reopening the wound, and pulls me out from under my bed. He ferociously lifts me up so that we are eye level and angrily says, "What's wrong, little fireball? Are you scared of me?"_

_He throws me against the wall and knocks the wind out of me, almost making me spit out the glass in my mouth. Now that I'm out, I take a look around for something larger to use as a weapon, but I don't see anything. I DO see that he still has his large bottle of Jack Daniel's with him though. He sees me eyeing his bottle and sneers again. "Do you want some, little fireball?"_

_I shake my head as I narrow my eyes at him. He walks over and grabs my arm tightly, his fingertips pressing hard enough to leave bruises, and throws me to the ground. I stupidly attempt to get up but he brings the back of his hand crashing into my face, once again almost knocking the glass from my mouth, and knocks me down flat. He sits on top of my stomach and pins my arms above my head. "What's wrong, little fireball? Cat got your tongue?"_

_I clench my teeth and narrow my eyes at him as I try to wriggle free. He places both my wrists in one hand and grabs his alcohol bottle, bringing it up and taking a swig from it. "You want some too?" He tips the bottle over my head, emptying the contents over my face. I try to turn away but he brings the bottle around to follow my face. Once the bottle is empty, he brings the mouth of the bottle up and looks in it. "You drank it all…"_

_He slams the bottle down on my face with enough force to break the bottle and screams, "YOU DRANK IT ALL!"_

_I can feel warm blood running down my face and I figure this is the only time I will have to strike, so I slide the glass to the front of my mouth, the sharp edge of it poking out between my lips, and raise my face up quickly. I drag the tip of the glass across his neck, drawing blood as I do. He releases my wrists as he brings his hands up to his neck and cries out._

_I hectically reach around for a piece of glass from the freshly broken bottle, silently cheering when I find one. I wrap my fingers around it and slam the point of it into my dad's leg. "Go to hell, asshole!"_

_He cries out again and jumps off of me. I take the opportunity to roll away from him and run out of my room. I barely make it into the kitchen before he's finds me again. He stands in the doorway clutching the stab wound on his thigh. "You have a dirty mouth, little fireball… Most twelve year olds wouldn't get away with speaking like that…"_

_I slowly move my hand around as I search for my wand. I stifle a grin when I find it hidden underneath a loaf of bread. I wrap my fingers around it and wait for the right moment. "Yeah well, most twelve year olds have great parents so you should take what you can get."_

_He steps forward and shakes his head. "You need to learn respect."_

_I smirk at him, hiding the twinge of pain I feel as the cuts on my face contract. "Yeah, alright… Let me guess, you're going to teach it to me?"_

_He clenches his fist and takes another step forward. "Are you being smart with me?"_

_I laugh, once again hiding the pain from the cuts on my face. "It's not too hard, you're pretty stupid."_

_He glances at the hand that is gripping my wand and sneers. "Do you think you're going to hex me?" Before I can respond, he brings both of his fists together on my arm, breaking my elbow. I clench my teeth and widen my eyes but refuse to make any noise. I bring my foot up and kick him on his stab wound and I can feel the sticky blood seep out of the opening. A growl escapes his throat as he lunges at me._

Before he comes in contact with me, the memory ends and I'm back in Draco's living room. I see Draco's shocked expression and, before he can say anything, I get up off the couch and yell "Where's your bathroom?"

"Second door on the left…"

I burst into the bathroom and flick on the light. I intently look at my face in the mirror, examining for any abrasions. I lift up my shirt and check for the cut from the memory then I examine my arm. Once I've decided that I'm alright, I splash some cold water on my face and take a deep breath.

I walk out of the bathroom and back into the living room with Draco. He continues to look at me with a bewildered expression. "Are you alright?"

I nod, refusing to make eye contact with him. That was one of the memories that I had asked Eli's mum to suppress when we were in America a couple of days ago and, while having to relive it was awful, having to relive it while someone else watched made it so much worse.

He clears his throat awkwardly as I walk into his kitchen and search for a glass. "Since you're alright… What the hell was that?"

I take a deep breath and rub my hands over my face. "That was my bloody childhood…" I turn around and look at him accusingly. "Why the hell did you let it go on for so long?"

He holds his hands up with a scoff. "I was _trying_ to give you the opportunity to block me!"

I shake my head and laugh angrily. "Clearly that didn't happen…"

"We can stop if you'd like…"

I roll my eyes and scoff. "It's been only ten minutes! What, one bad memory and you're ready to quit?"

He smirks at me, clearly trying to lighten up the situation. "They're not all going to be that bad, are they?"

I shrug my shoulders with a smirk. "I can't make any promises… But I refuse to quit." I leave the kitchen, forgetting about the glass of water I wanted, and walk back into the living room. I take a seat on the couch and take a deep breath. "Let's do this…"

He nods and raises up his wand again. "Legilimens."

_This time there isn't a scene, just pitch black surrounding me, although I can hear voices._

"_Empty your mind, damn it!"_

"_Dad I can't do this!"_

"_No child of mine is going to be a quitter! Now sit your ass down and CLEAR YOUR MIND! NO EMOTION AT ALL!"_

Draco lowers his wand and frowns at me. "Someone tried to teach you occlumency before?"

I nod. "My dad did… So that nobody could figure out what he was doing to me. I never was very good at it…"

He taps his chin thoughtfully. "Well his advice wasn't wrong… The key to this is clearing your mind completely…"

I smirk at him. "Oh now you want to give me some advice?"

He holds up his hands in retreat and laughs. "Point taken…"

"How did you get it?"

"I learned early on how to emotionally detach myself from things." He raises his wand again. "You ready to go again?"

(Break)

"Alright, so you're going to come back at the same time tomorrow?"

I nod with a smirk. "You're going to regret the day you agreed to teach me…"

He lets out a laugh. "Great…"

"By the way, when you were at Hogwarts, did any Death Eaters become teachers there?"

He nods. "Well, yes. But that was because Voldemort took over the school… Although during the first Wizarding War, Voldemort had students who were Death Eaters who recruited other students from the inside. Why?"

"Alright… I'll see you tomorrow…" I wave to him, ignoring the confused look his face, and apparate back to Grimmauld place.

As soon as I'm firmly planted in the living room, I run into the kitchen calling for Harry. I run back into the living room and laugh when I find him sitting on the couch reading the Daily Prophet. "How did the occlumency training go?"

"It was fine. That's not why I'm looking for you though."

He shuts the paper and sets it down so that he's looking at me. "What's on your mind?"

I take a seat on the coffee table in front of him and let out a huff. "I think I know why Andromeda Clarimonde is at Hogwarts…"

**Hmm... What do you guys think Andromeda is doing at Hogwarts?**

**As always, I want to thank everyone who took the time to leave a review, everyone who added this story to their alerts and everyone who reads my story! :)**

**I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions about this chapter! It would make my day! :)**

**Thanks yall!**

**-Tx :)**


	26. Chapter 26

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 26**

**Ari's POV**

The following three days had passed fairly slowly, what with my time only being occupied by occlumency lessons with Draco and talking to the others about what we might expect to go back to once we get back to Hogwarts.

After I had told Harry that I had a hunch as to what Andromeda was doing at Hogwarts, and explained my hunch to him, he told me to keep an eye on her and owl to him if I was correct since he can't do anything unless he has more than a hunch to work with.

My occlumency lessons have been dreary and tiring. I'm not getting any better at them and I can tell that Draco is beginning to get frustrated with that. It's not that I'm not trying; it's just that my emotions, mainly anger, tend to get the best of me once the memories hit. Draco has given me the day off so that he can, as he said, regroup. He going to try and find new ways to teach me. The only problem with that is, today is December 31st, which means that I get on the Hogwarts Express to go back to Hogwarts in two days, along with the rest of the group. That's not very much time to learn and master occlumency…

Freddie, Roxanne, Angelina and George have been staying here for the past two days. Grandma Weasley is staying at George's house and Grandma Weasley kicked them out so she could work on a surprise for them; for all of us really. We have no idea when they, or any of us, will be allowed to see that house again. Since they are all here, we've all been assigned roommates; although we haven't actually been following them. We've been sleeping in the same room, changing rooms every night, while Angelina and George have been staying in James' room.

Now Eli, James, Brittney, Al, Freddie and I are all sitting around on the ground in Al's room talking about quidditch. Lately it seems as though all of our conversations have been about my dad and his plans, Andromeda or my occlumency lessons so to talk about something so normal is a nice change of pace. It almost feels like things are normal again…

"So does Ari actually play, or is she like the mascot or something?"

I reach over and punch Eli in the arm while the others roll with laughter. Al sits up and wipes a tear from under his eye and chuckles as he looks at James and Freddie and says, "Could you imagine? She would be at the bottom of the pitch, dodging falling bludgers, and dancing around in a lion costume!"

James and Freddie lean against each other as they begin laughing even harder while Eli and Al high five each other. I grab a pillow off Al's bed and smack them in the faces with it then flip them all off with a huff. "I would be the best damn mascot ever, you tossers!"

Eli stifles his laughter as he shakes his head, a grin spread across his face. "Oh calm down you dummy. We're just having some fun!"

Brittney grabs the pillow from me and throws at him, nailing him directly in the face, then I lunge across from me and tackle him to the ground, taking a seat on his chest once I've pinned him. He flings the pillow off his face and grunts. "Ariana, you're crushing my lungs!"

I look down at him and sneer. "Oh calm down you dummy. I'm just having a bit of fun!"

Eli mouths something to the boys across from us and, before I can turn around and see what he mouthed, I am tackled off of him and leveled by Al, James and Freddie, who all high five each other with a laugh.

I grab my shoulder and groan in pain. "Ow ow ow! Merlin, that hurts!"

They all sit up off me, concern etched on their faces. "What's wrong?"

I look over at Brittney with a smirk then take advantage of their concern, shoving them back as I jump up off the ground with a grin. "Suckers!"

I wrench the bedroom door open and burst into the hallway, sprinting down the stairs into the living room, and running directly into Landen, who was walking out of the living room, knocking him to the ground. I help him up just in time for us to be knocked to the ground again by four laughing guys and Brittney, who was trying to stop them.

Landen angrily fights his way out from the bottom of the pile, grunting as he pulls himself free. "What the hell, Ariana?"

I suppress my laughter and struggle to get my head out so I can look up at him. "Oh come off it, Lan. We're only having a bit of fun! What's with the hostility?"

He clenches his jaw and fists then apparates away with a _POP!_ Everyone sits up and looks at the spot he just apparated from. Brittney throws her hands up and groans. "This is the third time in the past three days he's done that! Where the hell does he even go?"

James furrows his brow. "Why is he so damn moody? Is he on the rag or something?"

Brittney and I both aggressively smack him on the arm then I look at them with a sigh. "He would probably want to go somewhere that he can be alone…"

Then I remember: _"I meant empty as in my parents are never home, you twat! Any time that I'm here, I'm here by myself…"_

I roll my eyes and let out a laugh. _He __would__ go home to be alone… Idiot._ "I think I might know where he is… Any one of you want to go with me to find him?"

Eli grins at me. "I'll go with you Ari."

We both stand up and lock arms. The next thing I know, we are standing in the front room of Landen's manor. One poor house elf was walking through the room as we apparated in and was so startled by our appearance that she dropped the tray of empty plates she was carrying. She lets out a small cry at the mess she made and scrambles to clean it up, whimpering as she does. Eli and I crouch down and help her with it the best we can, since we _are_ responsible for the mess in the first place. She looks up at us once the mess is clean and says in a squeaky voice, "Thank you for your help, Miss Ariana Brighton."

Eli pretends to be hurt as he places a hand on his chest and drops his mouth open. "Hey now! I helped too!"

I backhand him in the stomach and look at the house elf. She is small, with large ears similar to those of bats, that hook over at the tops, large blue owl-like eyes, a long pointy nose and thin lips pursed tightly as if expecting me to yell at her, which leads me to assume that Landen _is_ in fact here and has been the other times. She comes up to about my waist and she is wearing a dingy "dress" that look more like a dirty pillowcase than an actual outfit. "How do you know me? I don't think I've met you before…"

She relaxes a bit, sighing softly, before answering me. "Azuri is very sorry. Master Landen has told Azuri all about you."

I smirk at her. "Hopefully not _all_ about me… Is he here now?"

She nods, the tray in her hands shaking a bit at the rapidity of her movement. "Master Landen is up in his room. Would you like for Azuri to let Master know you are here?"

I shake my head with a smile. "Thank you Azuri, but that won't be necessary… Do you know why he is so upset?"

She shakes her head firmly. "It's not Azuri's place to share the details of Master's life."

I shoot a glare at Eli when he sighs angrily then turn back to Azuri. "Well thank you for your help. Can you tell me which room is Landen's?"

She nods. "He is in the first room on the first floor. Azuri will show you the way."

She leads us up the staircase to a big wooden door. Azuri dips her head to us and walks away, still carrying the tray of plates. As soon as she is back down the stairs I open the door and Eli bursts in. He waves his wand at Landen and disarms him, all with a grin. Landen glares at Eli then turns his glare to both of us. "What the hell was that for? What do you want?"

Eli smirk at him as he twirls his wand and stows it away in his pocket. "Well we can't let you run away again, now can we? And-"

I hold my hand up in front of Eli's face and take a step forward. "AND we want to know what the hell is going on with you." Landen looks over at Eli and narrows his eyes so I turn to Eli and gesture for him to leave. "Why don't you go to the kitchen and get something to eat. But if I find out that you were annoying Azuri, and I _will_ ask, then I will bring you out to a random forest, take your wand and leave you stranded there."

Eli flashes me a toothy grin before he says he's just going to go back to Grimmauld place. He apparates away as I cross the large room and take a seat on Landen's bed. "What is going on with you lately?"

He crosses his arms and sits on his bed, still glaring at me. "It's none of your business."

"Excuse me? It's none of my business? You've been a complete wanker to everyone in the house, including me, and it's none of my business?" I glare at him and cross my arms as well.

"I'm not telling you."

I clench my fists and keep my arms crossed. "And why not?"

He shakes his head firmly. "Because you're going to laugh at me."

I roll my eyes with a head shake and a scoff. "Landen, you sodding idiot! A few weeks ago, you were willing to tell me anything, _including_ the time when you laughed so hard during your second year that you peed your pants during class and had to run out of the room to change your clothes. Did I laugh then? NO! And Merlin knows I had every right to! So why the hell would I laugh now? What has possibly changed between then and now?"

He uncrosses his arms and covers his face with his hands as he falls backward, laying out on his large bed. "It's Roxie…"

I erupt into a fit of laughter, which earns a glare from Landen. I regain control of myself with a few deep breaths and straighten up. "Okay… Sorry… Just a bit funny that with everything else going on, you are upset about a girl… What's wrong with Roxie?"

He shakes his head, his hands still covering his face, and grunts. "Nothing! Nothing is wrong with her!"

I shake my head, completely confused, and suppress the urge to punch the answer out of him. "I don't see how that could lead to a three day long bad attitude…"

He sighs and drops his hands from his face. "The problem isn't that there is something wrong with Roxie. The problem is that there is something wrong with _me_…"

I grunt angrily and throw my hands up. "Would you just tell me what's wrong with you already?"

"Two days ago, I tried to tell her I fancy her and she ended up telling me that she fancies Eli!" He groans loudly and brings his hands back up to cover his face. "What's wrong with me?"

I lie down on my stomach next to him, propping myself up with my elbows, and pull his hands off of his face then nudge him with my shoulder. "Landen Anthony Raghnall, nothing is wrong with you, alright? I mean, there are tons of things wrong with you, but not when it comes to girls."

He smirks at me. "Yeah? You really think so?"

I nod with a grin. "Yeah, I really think so. She'll come around, I'm sure of it. Although, if you continue to stomp around the house and throw a fit, she's probably going to be too scared of you to come around…"

He lets out a sigh as he looks at me and grimaces. "You're probably right…"

I smirk at him as I roll onto my back and stare at his ceiling. "Of course I'm right! I'm _always _right! Now can we go back to Grimmauld Place? Please?"

"You really can't stand being away from James for a moment longer?" I can hear the humor in his voice so I know he's joking, but I can't stop the eye roll and explanation that immediately follow.

"Look, James and I are just friends. Yeah, I kissed him a few days ago, but we are just friends…"

He smirks at me, clearly suppressing the urge to laugh. "You kissed him?"

I reach over and punch him in the arm as I roll my eyes and scoff. "Oh sod off! Nothing has happened since then! We are _just friends_."

"Do you love him?"

I'm a bit taken aback by his question, so it takes me a bit to stammer through my answer. "I, uh… um… Yeah, I do. But I can't afford to. With everything that's expected to happen, and the fact that one of us could still die, I can't afford to. So, as I said before, we are just friends."

Landen shrugs his shoulder and says in a definite tone, "It sounds as though you two will never be _just friends_…"

I groan as I crawl off his bed. "That's what I'm afraid of…"

He looks at his alarm clock and sighs. "We should really head back now. Ginny will probably be serving dinner soon."

I let out a laugh and help him off the bed. "She would go completely bonkers if we missed dinner… But hey, before we go back, I just want to say that next time something is bothering you, rather than throw a fit, just come talk to me. Please, for everyone's sake… I'm here for you, mate."

He nods then grabs my arm, rolling his eyes when I give him a questioning look. "Well Eli took my wand back to the house with him!"

"So your return is in my control? You're lucky you haven't angered me too much today…" I wrench my arm free from Landen's grip then walk over and open the door, stick my head out and yell, "Bye Azuri! It was lovely meeting you!" I walk back in and hold out me arm. "You really should be nicer to her…"

Landen smirks at me as he reaches for my arm. "She's just an elf."

I shake my head firmly and drop my arm before he can grab it. "No, she's not. She has a heart, and a brain. She breathes and thinks and feels. You'll do well to treat her nicely. Now…" I raise my arm back up, signaling the end of the conversation. "…Let's go."

He rolls his eyes as he grabs my arm. In an instant, we are back in the living room of Grimmauld Place. Landen releases my arm and I cup my hands around my mouth. "Helloooo… Anyone home?"

Ginny comes in with a smile on her face. "I was just about to send the boys to look for you two. We're going… _out_ for dinner. Landen, go get some new clothes from James and Ariana, go change into something a bit nicer."

I raise an eyebrow at her. "How nice?"

"Your sixteenth birthday nice. Oh! And I told Bri she could borrow one of your dresses. Is that alright?"

I nod as I walk up the stairs. "Absolutely. I'll be down in about fifteen minutes." I run to catch up to Landen, grabbing his shoulder just before he knocks on James' door.

"What Ari?"

I pull him down so that he is crouching down and our faces our even. I look around then quietly say, "We are _not_ to repeat what we talked about in your room, okay? I don't need James knowing what I said."

He smirks at me as he removes his shoulder from my grip and opens the door to James' room. "I don't think it's much of a secret that you love James, but my lips are sealed."

I nod my thanks then turn and run up to my room, flinging open my closet door and tearing through it to look for a dress to wear. After pulling everything out of my closet and not finding anything I want to wear, I resort to making an outfit from other dresses. I grab one of my long red dresses and use Cass's wand to cut and sew it into a high-low skirt that has its shortest part rest right above my knees and the longest part barely dragging along the ground behind me, then pull a black sleeveless blouse with white pearl buttons out of the clothes pile on my bed. I put on the blouse and pull on my skirt, tucking the shirt into the skirt and then I grab some black heels. I then use the wand to cut my returned-to-blonde, low back length hair up to just below my shoulders then, after cleaning up the hair I cut off, I curl my hair. I clip my bangs back with a red clip and quickly do my make-up. I double check myself in the mirror then laugh at myself for the excessive effort I've put into this outfit before I take off down the stairs.

When Ginny sees me, she nods with a grin. "That will be perfect. Are you ready to go?"

I look around for the others then turn back to Ginny with a raised eyebrow. "What about everyone else?"

She waves me over with a grin. "They've all left already. You are the only one left."

I point back to the stairs. "But… What about Landen?"

This time she laughs while waving me over again. "He left with James and Harry a few moments ago. As I said before, you're the only one left."

I nod as I quickly walk over to her and grab her outstretched arm. As soon as I come in contact with her arm, we are whisked away to a large, wooden cottage with bright white lights strung around the expanse of it. I glance over at Ginny, a smile threatening to spread across my face. "Another party? Really?"

She shrugs her shoulders as we walk toward the house. "It makes mum happy, so we all just go along with it. Besides, who doesn't love a party?"

"Where are we?"

She grabs the door handle and grins at me. "Welcome to Georgie's place…"

She opens the door, revealing a living room full of Potters, Weasleys, Raghnalls, Franklyns and other assortments of people who are all mingling rather loudly. Ginny walks in ahead of me and yells, "Happy New Year's Eve everyone!" She walks over to Harry, who is talking to Grandma Weasley, and gives him a kiss before turning to talk to her mother.

As I look out at the unfamiliar room full of people, I feel a certain sense of discomfort and vulnerability; as if I'm brand new and once again don't know anyone. As if on cue, Freddie and Brittney, James, Eli and Spencer, Landen, Roxanne, and Al walk toward the front door, each carrying a glass of butterbeer. I take a relaxing breath, bursting with joy at the familiar faces, and wave to them. As they walk closer, I can see Eli pointing at me and laughing. "What are you laughing at, Franklyn?"

He grins at me but doesn't say anything, so Al explains Eli's laughter. "Eli just finds it funny that you manage to change your hair for every party."

I roll my eyes at Eli and turn away from him to face Freddie, James and Al. "So why didn't we go to this party last year?"

Freddie shrugs his shoulders as he looks around the inside of his house. "Because this is the first year Grandma has set it up. Apparently, that's why she banned us all from the house; she was planning and organizing all of this. Do you lot know who you're going to be kissing at midnight?"

I look at him skeptically. "I didn't realize that was done here too…"

He shakes his head and looks at Brittney. "It's not, but Eli was telling us about it and I think it might have to be a tradition we start…" He wraps his arms around Brittney and pulls her in close, nuzzling his face in her neck, which earns a laugh from her and a scowl from Eli.

Eli's expression changes from a scowl to a grin as he looks over at Spencer and wiggles his eyebrows. "Whatta ya say, gorgeous? You wanna be my New Year's kiss?"

She holds her hand up while smirking. "We'll see how the night goes…"

Landen wrings his hands together and clears his throat nervously as he turns and looks at Roxanne. "Roxie, will you be _my_ New Year's kiss?"

Roxanne looks over at Eli and frowns. "I don't know…"

I can see that Landen is sinking, so I decide to intervene. "Oh come on, Roxie. He's a really good kisser, I promise… Plus, everyone else is pairing up…"

I glance over at Landen and see him silently mouth "Thank you" as Roxanne sighs her agreement.

Freddie unburies his face from the crook of Brittney's neck so that he can look at Al, James and me with a grin. "That just leaves you three…"

Before anyone can say anything else we hear, "I'll take James…"

As soon as I hear her voice, I cringe instinctively. "Who invited the ruddy likes of you?"

**You lovely readers have been so patient with me so I decided to show you my appreciation by giving you a nice semilong chapter. :)**

**As always, I would love to know what you all thought about the chapter! I would also like to thank those who left a review, those who added this story to their alerts, and those who have stuck with this story from the beginning and continue to read it. You all have no idea how much I appreciate you! :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx :)**


	27. Chapter 27

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 27**

**James' POV**

"I'll take James…"

Just the sound of her voice brings back all those horrendous memories from the Christmas party last year. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Ariana cringe and then hear her say, "Who invited the ruddy likes of you?"

Landen laughs angrily. "Seriously Ashlynn, what are you doing here?"

Ariana, Al and I all turn around at the same time and I grab Ariana's arm instinctually as she takes a threatening step toward a sneering Ashlynn. She glances at me then repeats her question. "Ashlynn, what the hell are you doing here?"

Rylan Adonis steps out of the crowd of people and steps up next to Ashlynn, a sneer plastered on his face as he looks at Ariana. "She's here with me. Although, I'd be willing to give her up to James if I got to have a New Year's kiss with you…"

Behind us, Eli says, "Shit Ari! This guy looks just like you! Are you sure you're not related?"

Eli isn't completely wrong when he says that Ariana and Rylan look alike. They both have strawberry blonde hair, the same bright, piercing green eyes, the same slender nose shape and light freckles that sprinkle across their nose and cheeks.

Ariana rolls her eyes and walks away from Rylan and Ashlynn without answering. We all follow suit and walk away, losing each other in the crowd of people that fills the living room. Al is with me and, the last I saw, Ariana was off on her own, Freddie and Brittney were together, Eli was off with Spencer and Landen was following Roxanne around. As we walk around, Al sees a blonde Ravenclaw that he's had an off and on relationship with for the past two years. As soon as he sees her, he's off to try and win her back again, leaving me alone in the crowd of adults.

I walk into the kitchen to get another butterbeer when I hear, "Have you seen James anywhere?"

"Oh Ashlynn, yes I think I saw him go into the kitchen."

I grimace and duck out of the kitchen when I hear her walking into the kitchen to look for me. I see Alec standing in the living room so I walk over to talk to him. "Hey Darkbloom!"

He claps me on the shoulder with a grin. "Hey captain! Long time no see!"

I let out a laugh as I rub my shoulder. "You know you don't have to call me captain anymore, right?"

Alec nods his head and laughs as he claps me on the shoulder again. "You're always going to be captain to me, captain. By the way, you just missed Ariana. She's avoiding that Rylan bloke. She told me to hit him if I see him because apparently he's following her around."

I rub my shoulder again, a small grimace playing on my lips. Alec isn't very bright and doesn't quite know his own strength, but he's really nice, extremely loyal, and an overall great friend to have so I put up with the shoulder hitting and "Captain" calling. "Er, alright Darkbloom. Well, I have a favor to ask of you as well. Will you let me know if you see Ashlynn around?"

He looks around then smirks at me with a nod. "Is she still following you around? Doesn't she know you're with Ariana again?"

"I'm actually _not_ with Ariana again, we're just friends, but yes, Ashlynn is still following me around…"

He seems a bit taken aback as he stammers through his retort. "O-oh… But I figured, when I saw you two at the Christmas party, that… Sorry for assuming, captain."

I shake my head, dismissing him, and change the subject. "It's fine. So how are things going with you and Rose?"

We stand in the living room and talk for about an hour and a half. That is, we talk until about 11:45, at which time Alec warned me that he saw Ashlynn approaching us. I quickly thank him then duck away and try to find a place to hide. After searching for a few minutes, I settle on hiding in a small coat closet. I quietly open the door and walk in; looking around to make sure Ashlynn didn't see me before I shut the door.

After sitting in the closet for what seems like a lifetime, I look at my watch. _11:57 pm…_

Suddenly the door is flung open. I look up with wide eyes then breathe a sigh of relief when I recognize the face. "Oh, it's just you."

**Ari's POV**

After walking away from those tossers Ashlynn and Rylan, I take a seat on a couch. I kick off my heels and set them next to the couch then pull my legs up under me. I close my eyes and lean my head back, trying to forget that unpleasant encounter with Rylan and try to figure out how I'm going to master occlumency.

The couch cushion sinks down as someone joins me on the couch. "Why are you always sleeping at parties?"

I grunt and slam my hands down on the couch as I sit up and angrily glare at him. "Why are you so sodding creepy, Rylan? Why can't you just take a hint and leave me alone?"

He winks at me then smirks. "Because I know that I'm perfect for you. More perfect for you than that wanker James Potter…"

I roll my eyes and laugh cynically. "Seriously Rylan! Leave me alone!"

I go to get off the couch but he grabs my wrist. "I'm going to find you tonight and I'm going to kiss you. Then you will see that I'm perfect for you."

I clench my teeth and narrow my eyes as I jerk my wrist free from his grip. I flip him off and stomp off into the loud, chattering group of adults standing around in the living room. As soon as I push past the first ring of adults, I bump into Alec. "Oh hey Alec! Long time no see!"

He claps me on the shoulder and grins. "Oh hi Ari! How are you this evening?"

I look around for Rylan then look back to Alec and smirk. "I've had better nights. Would you do me a favor?"

"Yeah, anything."

I look around again. "If you see that twat Rylan Adonis around here, would you mind giving him a solid swing to the face? He's been following me around and I don't think he plans on stopping. It's getting a bit ridiculous, honestly…"

He nods as he looks around.

I pat him on the arm and smile. "Thanks Alec, you're the best!" I look around again and think I see him so I duck down and groan. "Shit… Well, this has been fun. We should do it again sometime… Maybe I'll see you later, Alec. Thanks again!"

I stay ducked down and walk through the crowd. Since I've never been here before, I have no idea where I'm going, but I continue to wander around, hoping I'll either stumble across someone I know or find a room that I can both hide in and eat in at the same time. I wander into the kitchen and internally cheer when I see platters of food all over the counters. As I stuff my face with food, Freddie and Brittney come in; laughing when they see my cheeks puffed out at the amount of food I have in my mouth. Brittney nudges Freddie's chest and laughs. "She looks like a chipmunk!"

Freddie grins as he removes his arm from around Brittney's waist and takes the remaining food from my hands. "How about you swallow what you have in your mouth before you try to stuff anything else in there…"

Brittney quietly spits out a "That's what she said", which causes me to choke on the copious amounts on food in my mouth as I attempt to laugh. After I finish the food in my mouth, the three of us stand in the kitchen, talking about what Rylan is doing and eating large amounts of fruit chunks, for a little over an hour and a half before Rylan makes his way in. My eyes widen as I swallow the fruit in my mouth then quietly say, "Can you two stall him? I'm going to go find a place to hide…"

They nod and bombard him with plates of food while I attempt to quietly make my way out of the kitchen without being seen. Before I leave, I glance over at the clock on the wall. _11:55 pm…_

I hear Brittney and Freddie yelling something along the lines of "He's coming" so I stand upright and run out of the kitchen, almost slipping on the back of my skirt as I do. I see a closet door and decide that's going to have to be my hiding place for now. I grab the handle and fling the door open, only to reveal that the hiding place is taken.

"Oh, it's just you…"

I look around and run into the cramped closet, pulling the door shut behind me. "Yep, just me… Sorry Jamie, I didn't know this place was taken."

He shrugs his shoulders and quietly laughs. "That's alright, we can share it. Are you still trying to get away from Rylan?"

I nod as I take a seat on the floor next to him and groan loudly. "He just won't bloody quit! I mean, how many ti-"

James clasps his hand over my mouth and looks at the door. "You're not the only one hiding you know. If you give away my hiding spot, and Ashlynn finds me, I will see to it that Rylan finds you."

I pull his hand off of my mouth and glare at him. "You wouldn't…"

"RYLAN! ARIANA IS IN H-"

I slap my hand over his mouth and quickly brandish my wand. "Alright, alright. If you're going to be like that…" I wave my wand at the door and say "Muffliato."

James removes my hand from his mouth and nods. "Thank you."

I look at his watch and see that it is 11:59 so I turn to him and grin. "I want to see the fireworks. I'm sure George is going to make sure they are brilliant. Come with me please?"

He shakes his head. "Ashlynn is out there somewhere…"

I roll my eyes and grab his hand, pulling him up. "I'll protect you from the small girl. Please come with me?"

"On one condition…"

Suddenly the living room erupts into the countdown.

_10…_

I let out a sigh. "What's that, Jamie?"

_9…_

"You have to be my New Year's kiss."

_8…_

He smirks. "Better decide fast… It's almost midnight…"

_7…_

I roll my eyes again. "Well twist my arm…"

_6…_

"Is that a yes?"

_5…_

I nod. "That's a yes…"

_4…_

"A willing yes?"

_3…_

"Jamie! Yes! It's a _willing_ yes!"

He grabs my hand with a grin and we burst out of the closet and take off for the already open back door.

_2…_

We push through all the people who are adjourning to the back yard, barely make it outside before they all yell "ONE! HAPPY NEW YEAR!"

James turns and looks at me, his hands tucked in his pockets sheepishly, and a big grin spread across his face. "Happy New Year, Ari."

I smirk at him then grab his face and pull him down, quickly pressing my lips to his. I pull my face away almost immediately, before it becomes anything more than a New Year's kiss, and smirk. "Happy New Year, Jamie."

He looks around with a smirk. "You see the fireworks too, right?"

Before I can answer, Landen walks by and drags us around to a trellis on the side of the house. Once we've climbed the trellis and are safely lying down on the roof with the rest of the group, Landen leans over and whispers with a smirk, "My lips may be sealed, but yours sure aren't…"

I playfully smack him in the arm with a laugh then roll my head to the side, so that my lips are next to James' ear, and answer his question from before. "Yes, I saw them too."

I see the corners of his mouth pull up into a slight smile as he silently reaches over and grabs my hand as he looks over and whispers, "You know I love you, right?"

I roll my head back up, looking at the fireworks going off above us, and nod. "I know…"

"And you know I'll give you whatever space you need, right?"

I give his hand a squeeze. "Thanks…"

We all spend the rest of the night on the roof, marveling at the beauty of the bright and colorful fireworks and enjoying the merriment the party brought with it.

**Alright yall, I'm not really sure how I feel about this chapter but I didn't want to keep you all waiting because I'm not sure about the chapter. As always, I would _love_ to hear your thoughts and opinions about this chapter!**

**Also, as always, I would like to thank those of you who took the time to leave a review, those of you who added this story to your alerts, and those of you who are still reading my story despite chapters like this. I absolutely appreciate all of you and your support! :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx :)**


	28. Chapter 28

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 28**

**Ari's POV**

The Hogwarts Express blows its horn, signaling that we have ten minutes until it pulls out of Kings Cross Station and takes us all back to Hogwarts. I take a deep breath and tightly clutch the purple beaded bag around my shoulder as I look at the train in front of me. Ginny gently places a hand on my shoulder and gives it a squeeze. "Are you sure you want to ride the train back? You can always apparate back to school…"

I continue to stare at the train as I shake my head. "I'm going to have to face them sooner or later and, if it's all the same to you, I would rather just rip that bandage off now."

Harry places his hand on my other shoulder and sighs. "Alright, well we can have the boys form a sort of protective wall around you when you-"

I shake my head again, suppressing the anger that is bubbling up inside me. Why does everyone think I need protecting? I'm a seventeen year old girl, not an invalid… "I don't need protecting and I don't need to be sheltered. I'm going to walk through that train with my head up and deal with whatever those students can throw at me _alone._ I can handle this."

He gives my shoulder a firm squeeze as he lets out a sigh of defeat. "Alright… I DO want you all to stay together once you're on board though." He can see that I'm about to argue so he holds up his hand. "No arguments. Ariana, don't forget what I said about Andromeda. Owl me as soon as you figure out if your suspicions are correct or not, okay?"

I manage a nod before Ginny is hugging us all and telling us to write if we need anything at all. Harry pulls her back away from us before she can start crying, and waves to all of us. "Owl us if anything happens."

I nod again and look back at the train, taking another deep breath. Brittney comes up next to me and hooks her arm through mine while looking at the train. "You're not alone, you know."

I'm not in the mood to explain to her that in the end, I really will be alone. This fight with my dad has been years in the making and when it comes down to it; it's just going to be between him and me. I _do_ appreciate the sentiment though, so I manage to breathe out a quick thanks before boarding the train.

At first, as we walk through the train, things are fine, although I expect that's because people weren't quite aware who was walking through the train. As we get further back, however, the murmurs and stares begin. The only reason I know they are staring is because, although I keep my gaze ahead of me the entire time, people are beginning to pop their heads out of the compartments they are sitting in, craning their necks to get a good look at what was coming down the train. I try to keep my composure as we pass by the students who are ogling at us. Al drops off after a bit to sit with the blonde Ravenclaw, who is now his girlfriend, and Lorcan and Lysander. After that, Eli breaks off because he sees Spencer sitting in a compartment with Alec and he wants to talk to her. And by talk, I mean flirt.

After a few more steps, I hear Roxanne say, "I didn't sign up for this…" before taking a seat in a compartment with her friends.

I turn around and look at Landen, who looks unbelievably conflicted. I internally roll my eyes as I gesture after Roxanne. "Go follow her."

He nods his thanks and runs after her and joining her in the compartment she entered. I look away from the compartment he just entered and turn my gaze to the front of the train. Everything is at a standstill up there and there are heads sticking out of every compartment, all looking in our direction. The silence and stillness is finally broken when a third year Hufflepuff clears her throat and asks, "Is it true that you're a Death Eater?"

Suddenly the train erupts into questions and exclamations, some of which include: "Are you _all_ Death Eaters?" and "What do you have against muggles?" and "Please don't hurt our families!"

I even got asked what it took to join by a few sketchy students. None of those questions bothered me, I was even able to ignore some of the more obnoxious exclamations and questions. What shook me most was when I saw Rodney, the third year Gryffindor who got in a fight with a Slytherine last year because the Slytherine insulted his muggle mom. The moment I made eye contact with him, and saw the look of betrayal on his face, I reel around and walk away, looking for the first available empty corridor. When I can't find one, James and Freddie take it upon themselves to kick a couple of first years out of one.

Once the first years have run out, fear etched on their faces, they turn and gesture for me and Brittney to get in. We all take a seat just as the train is pulling out of the station.

After sitting in tense silence for a few moments, Freddie clears his throat and smirks. "Well that wasn't so bad…"

I roll my eyes with a laugh. "Oh yea… The students at Hogwarts think that we, as a group, are a bunch of Death Eaters who are bent on getting rid of American muggles, and are completely afraid of us. You're right, things couldn't have gone more smooth…"

James lets out a laugh and nods his agreement. "What was with those questions? Some of them were completely absurd!"

Brittney is the only one who isn't laughing at the situation. In fact, she is looking at us as if we're mental. "Am I the only one who realizes that things are going to be really hard once you get back to school? They all think terrible things about you and you three are in here _laughing_ about it?"

I shrug my shoulders. "Let them think what they want. We all know the truth, and that's all that matters."

She shakes her head defiantly at me as she waves her wand at the door, silently muttering "Muffliato." She looks at me and crosses her arms. "I know that's not what you think. I saw the way you looked at that little boy, Ari. He rocked you a bit, which means you obviously care what people think."

I narrow my eyes at her as the door to the compartment opens up and Eli walks in. "Whoa! Why is it so tense in here?"

I ignore him and continue to glare at Brittney. "Sod off, Bri. Did the look on his face upset me a bit? Yes. But I don't give two shits what _anyone_ here thinks because they have no idea what's going on or the severity of the situation. So if I want to laugh at what's happening, and try to find humor in the fact that basically everyone in the school thinks I'm a terrible person, then I should be able to do that without getting in trouble!"

She stands up and points a finger at me. "You can't involve me in this situation and then bitch at me for trying to be rational about the situation!"

"Fuck you, mate! I didn't _ask_ for you to come along! In fact, I wanted you and Eli safe at Aunt Laura's but you _insisted_ on coming along! So don't bitch at _me_ when I decide I want to laugh at any of this and don't get upset when I refuse to let that asshole I call a father ruin my time at Hogwarts!"

She scoffs angrily and she clenches her fists. "Fuck me? Fuck _you_! You shouldn't be worrying about having a good time at school right now! You're so damn irresponsible! I was always the responsible one though, wasn't I? Always getting us out of trouble and such. Well I can't get you out of this one, Ari!"

I get up off the seat and throw my hands up angrily. "I DIDN'T ASK FOR ANY OF THIS! I didn't _ask_ to be responsible for any of this so I should be able to deal with it as I please!"

Brittney continues to glare at me for a moment then storms out of the compartment with an angry grunt. I stand still with my fists clenched and wait until I can't see her anymore before I stomp out of the compartment as well, turning the opposite way from Brittney, toward the back of the train.

**James' POV**

"Well that was sufficiently awkward…" I continue to stare at the door to the compartment and feel thoroughly confused.

Freddie nods his agreement. "I'm still not really sure what just happened…"

Eli shakes his head as he closes the compartment door and takes a seat. "They used to do this a lot… Mostly because Bri is a know-it-all jerk who thinks she is Ari's mother, and Ari is an irresponsible child who likes to act on a whim without thinking about the consequences for her actions. That combination tends to lead to a bit of personality clashing… I'm amazed they went this long without arguing too much. The last time they fought like this it was because they were both dating the same guy at Salem…"

Freddie raises his eyebrows. "What? What happened with that?"

"Well the guy has a bit of a permanent limp, but that was because of an unfortunate _'accident'_. Those two just yelled at each other about it."

I look at Eli then look back at the door. "Shouldn't someone go get them? I mean, they were pretty upset and now they're wandering around a train full of students who think they are Death Eaters…"

He shrugs his shoulders. "Nah. They are going to need some time to cool off. They'll find each other and talk when they are ready."

I shake my head as I think about the things Brittney said. "Those things Bri was saying were completely off too… Ever since Ari found out about this she's been preparing herself for this. She's had to deal with a lot since she moved her two years ago…"

Eli looks at me with a smirk. "Although I'm sure you're right, you _are_ a bit biased…"

Freddie shakes his head also. "No, it's true. She's lost both of her parents, although it sounds like the loss of her dad wasn't much to mourn over, then she lost four of her best friends, one of which tried to give her to Brighton in order to have him bring her dead boyfriend and Ariana's best friend back to life. She had to grow up really fast, you know."

Eli shakes his head and looks at us solemnly. "No, I didn't know… Why didn't she tell us about that?"

Freddie shrugs as he readjusts on his seat. "Maybe she didn't want to talk about it. I may have only known Ariana for a few years, but even _I _know she's not big on people feeling sympathetic toward her."

Eli laughs energetically. "Yea, you're probably right… I mean, I once made the mistake of telling her I felt sorry for her, to which she politely responded with 'Shove it up your ass.'"

We all clutch our sides as we roll around on our seats, laughter filling the compartment as the train flies down the tracks.

**Ari's POV**

As I stomp away from the corridor, each step earning a harder huff, I think about what Brittney had said. I mean, yes, she had saved my tail more times than not, but that was a long time ago! I've come a _long_ way since then! What gives her the right to yell at me about this? I guess maybe I could have reacted differently…

I take a deep breath and turn around to go find Brittney and apologize for my outburst. It only takes me a moment to find her, because she is sitting in the middle of the hall with her arms and legs crossed tightly, her back turned to me, so that she is facing the front of the train.

I walk over and take a seat in front of her so that I'm facing her. "Bri, I'm sorry…"

She glares at me for a moment then her shoulders slump and she breathes out a sigh. "Me too…"

We give each other a tight hug and stand up. "Let's go back to the compartment. We still have some things to talk about…"

"Such as?"

I look around before I respond. "Occlumency lessons and Andromeda…"

**Things were pretty intense between Bri and Ari, werent they? Good thing they patched things up fairly quickly, huh?**

**Occlumency lessons and Andromeda, huh? Are you finally going to find out what Ariana thinks Andromeda is doing at Hogwarts?**

**I would love to hear you lovely readers thoughts and opinions about this chapter! :)**

**Also, I would like to thank the readers who took the time to leave a review, those who added this story to their alerts, and those of you who have stuck with this story from the beginning. I super appreciate your support! :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx :)**


	29. Chapter 29

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 29**

**Ari's POV**

Brittney and I tug open the compartment door, only to be greeted by the sounds of laughter that fill the compartment. I look at Brittney quizzically, then turn my attention back to the boys. "What's so funny?"

As soon as they hear my voice, they stop laughing and look at Brittney and me. Eli clears his throat and wipes a finger under his eye. "It's nothing. By the way, I hope you don't mind, Freddie told me about everything about the deaths of your friends… And piled on top of all of this… I have no idea how you're going to do it Ari. I'm so sorry…"

I roll my eyes and flip him off. "You and your sympathy can _both _drop dead."

Eli looks at James and Freddie then they all burst into a fit of laughter again. Brittney rolls her eyes as she walks in and takes a seat next to Freddie. I shut the door behind me and sit down on the floor, closing my eyes and leaning back against the wall as I wait for the boys to calm down.

The next thing I know, I'm being poked awake by James. I rub my eyes and look around. "What's going on?"

James smirks as he helps me off the ground. "We're at Hogwarts. Well, we're at the station. Now we have to work on sneaking Eli and Bri into the school."

I straighten up and nod, completely waking up as soon as he says we are at the school. "Okay. Do you want to give them the cloak? Actually, you can just give the cloak to Eli. Bri is almost as sneaky as me."

He pulls the invisibility cloak out of his pocket and hands it to Eli. "Sorry, you're going to have to crouch down… This cloak was apparently made for smuggling small children and house elves."

Eli takes the cloak from James, running his fingers over the fabric, and ogling at the cloak in his hands. He drapes the cloak over himself and lets out a giddy laugh when he realizes he's invisible. "This thing is awesome!"

"Are you lot ready to go?"

Freddie grabs Brittney and gives her a quick kiss. "Alright, now I am."

I let out a laugh as I roll my eyes. "Let's go…"

As we leave, someone flicks me on the ear. I roll my eyes again as I lean over to James and whisper, "I'm not so sure that letting Eli be invisible was such a great idea…"

James smirks as he looks around for Eli. "Hopefully we don't lose him in the school… We would _never_ find him…"

After a grueling and hunger-filled hour and a half trip back to the castle, we finally make it back onto the castle grounds. It takes us a moment, but we finally manage to make it out of the crowd as they all usher into the great hall. Once we are free from the other students we are able to sneak back to Gryffindor tower in a single file line, with Freddie in the lead and Brittney behind him, pulling him into the shadows to hide whenever necessary, and then following them is me, hopefully being followed by Eli, then James at the flank.

It only takes us a few moments to get back to Gryffindor tower since we don't run into any straggling students or professors wandering the halls; Freddie didn't even need to bring us through any secret passageways to get there. When we all get inside the Gryffindor common room, James and I usher the others into the Heads common room, jumping back in surprise when we find Al and Landen already there. Al gives us a smirk as he takes in the looks on our faces. "Freddie and James aren't the only ones who know secret passages here…"

I shake the surprise off my face and let out a laugh. "No, I guess they're not… Well! Now that everyone is here, I have some things to talk to you about. We'll start with Andromeda."

The atmosphere in the room immediately changes from lighthearted to tense at the mention of her name. Freddie's expression darkens as he walks over to my bed and takes a seat on it and Landen narrows his eyes as he stares at the ground. I lean back against my wall, crossing my arms and clearing my throat as I do. "I'm going to need help, from _all_ of you, to keep an eye on her. Follow her around, listen to her conversations, just watch her closely because I have a hunch, and it's _only_ a hunch right now, that she might be recruiting students for my dad…"

I wait in silence for everyone to process what I've just said. After I feel that I've waited a sufficient amount of time, I clear my throat again and turn my attention to Eli and Brittney, who are both looking around the room at the others, trying to understand their reactions. "Bri, Eli? I'm going to need you two to do a lot of the following and observing since you aren't in any classes here. I, and James if he wants, will be shadowing her at night during patrol hours."

Freddie chimes in. "What do you want me to do?"

I tap my chin as I run through the many things I might want him to do, nodding when I finally decide upon one. "I want you and Al to follow Castor."

"What about Arowena?"

I look over at Landen with wide eyes and my voice hits a new note when I yell, "_EXCUSE_ ME?!"

Landen and Al both nod solemnly, both watching me carefully, as they try and gauge my reaction. "Oh, she's back alright…"

I place my hand on my forehead and shake my head as I take a moment to try and regain my composure. Although I haven't completely sorted through all my thoughts on this, the others are staring at me expectantly, so I nod my head absentmindedly and stammer through my response. "Oh, um… Yea… Al and Freddie will follow her too, I guess… I don't want anyone following any of them alone, either. You must _always_ have at least one person with you, okay?"

They all nod their agreement, so I continue. "Also, I want you lot to write down the names of any of the students who ask about 'joining us Death Eaters', alright? I want to have as much of a heads up about who we could be fighting as possible. Oh, and you aren't allowed to actually fight anyone here. I don't want to give anyone more of a reason to hate us."

Landen holds up his hand and looks around the room a bit angrily. "Er, why did everyone else get a person to follow except for me?"

"I'm actually glad you asked. That leads me to my next point... I didn't give you anyone to follow because I have something else for you to do. I need you to help me continue with my occlumency lessons."

He looks around the room again, clearly a bit shocked. "Why me?"

I let out a laugh and shake my head. "Does it matter?"

James nods and crosses his arms across his chest as he stares intently at Landen, who has noticed James' staring and is now wearing a large smirk. "Yes, I think it does matter."

"Well it shouldn't. Now, I don't know about you lot, but I'm ruddy starving and we've missed dinner by about five minutes. I think James and I should go get some food from the kitchen and bring it back up here. Does that work for you all?"

As if on cue, Brittney's stomach grumbles loudly, followed closely behind by Al's. I suppress the urge to laugh as I look at the both of them clutching their stomachs. "I'll take that as a yes… Jamie, are you coming?"

"Why don't you ask Landen to go with you instead?"

I shrug my shoulders as I look over at Landen and smirk. "Alright, fine. Landen do you wa-"

James jumps up off the floor and pushes me out the door. "Oh shut it, you prat. Let's go."

Before James has gotten me out in the hall, I call out over my shoulder, "AL! You're in charge! Keep them _all _in this dorm! We should be back in an hour!"

Once we get out into the corridor, James stomps ahead of me with a huff. I follow behind him, once again stifling the urge to laugh, as we walk down the corridor in silence. We don't talk the entire way to the kitchen, which is starting to annoy me. I just can't understand why he is being such a child right now…

After running into Azuri in the kitchen (It turns out she works here during the year and at the Raghnalls during the holidays), and loading up lots of food into the invisibility cloak, realizing as we do that this plan wasn't thought through very well, we wander back down the corridor side by side in continued silence.

After a few minutes of walking in silence, I grab James' arm and angrily pull him to a stop. "Out with it already! Why are you so sodding upset with me?"

He drops the cloak and throws his hands up angrily. "WHY DID YOU P-"

I clasp my hand over his mouth as I look around. Once I've determined the coast is clear, I drop my hand from his mouth and shake my head. "We may be Head Boy and Head Girl, but we can still get in trouble for being out this late."

He glares at me for a moment then takes a deep, calming breath. "Why did you pick Landen to teach you occlumency?"

"Well, let's see... Because I couldn't have him following Andromeda, he has history with her, and I couldn't have him follow Castor or…" I grimace at the next name, "…Arowena, he has history with both of them as well. Plus-"

He shakes his head and cuts me off. "But why not me?"

I roll my eyes as I pick up the cloak and gesture for him to continue walking with me. "Because, when it comes to me, you're a bit of a protective." He opens his mouth to say something, but I hold up my hand and continue. "I'm not saying that's a bad thing, but Landen is a bit more… _objective_ so, when things get a bit sketchy, I know he's not going to get upset about it. Well, I mean, he might get a bit upset, but not to the point of me needing to stop."

He raises an eyebrow and gives me a worried look. "Is it really that bad?"

I nod as we round the corner to Gryffindor tower. "Honestly, it's terrible." We get into the Gryffindor common room and I sigh. "Look, you really want to know how bad it is? Fine. Meet us in the Room of Requirements tomorrow night at eleven."

He nods as we walk into the Heads common room. As soon as the portrait swings shut, Al, Freddie, Brittney, Eli and Landen come running out of my room and snatch the cloak of food from my grasp. They lay it out on the floor and immediately begin digging in to the food, only pausing to breathe every so often.

After everyone has had their fill of food and scattered around the Heads common room, all lying around, I take a step forward and clear my throat. "Alright, Eli and Bri, this is going to be where you two sleep from now on. All you other Gryffindors are welcome here too, but Al, you're going to have to make your way back to your own room from now on. Not that I don't love having you here, but your roommates are probably going to start getting suspicious if you don't show up to your room at all this year."

He looks around at the others. "Can I stay tonight?"

I shrug my shoulders and look at James. "I don't see why not. Is that alright with you Jamie?"

James nods before walking into his room and shutting the door. Al gives me a curious look as he looks from James' door back to me. "What is his problem?"

I shrug my shoulders again. "I honestly don't know… But don't worry about it. You all better get some rest. We have classes bright an early tomorrow morning. If you need anything, you know where I'll be."

We all say our good nights and I walk into my room, leaving the door open just in case anyone needs anything. I crawl into bed without changing out of my clothes and immediately drift off to sleep.

**So now you know what Ariana thinks Andromeda is up to! Pretty crazy, right?**

**As always, I want to thank my readers who took the time to leave a review for the last chapter, for those who added this story to their alerts, and to everyone who has stuck with this story from the beginning.**

**Also, I would absolutely positively love to hear what your thoughts and opinions are for this chapter! :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx :)**


	30. Chapter 30

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 30**

**Ari's POV**

I pull on my Hogwarts robe absentmindedly as I continue to think about my dream from last night. It hadn't been about anything special, just my dad, but most of my dreams were about him lately so to have a dream about him is pretty typical, and I usually just brush them off or ignore them. What made this one so different was that it wasn't about when he was hurting me, which is what my dreams are usually pertaining to, but about the day of my mom's funeral.

He had been so angry with me before the funeral that he had to leave town, leaving me home alone for a few days. When he came back, he was completely different, almost friendly and loving. Then at the funeral, he had been so nice and supportive; he had even taken a stand and sat next to my mom's casket with me when someone tried to tell him that I couldn't sit there.

This dream had led to a lot of questions, but one in particular had been plaguing me all morning. When is it alright to take the life of another person?

He had been so nice then, which means he might still be good, even if it is a miniscule amount. So then, wouldn't that mean that killing him would be wrong? Good people don't deserve to die and neither do people who have the potential to be changed or saved, right? I mean, yes, he has been a total asshole for the past eleven or so years, but the three times I've most recently dealt with him, he hasn't killed me. Maybe he regrets what he's done… Or maybe I'm being too much of an optimist and I'm grasping… Maybe if I could talk to someone about this, it wouldn't be so difficult to understand. _I wonder if Neville has a class right now…_

I hear someone call my name, which brings me out of my thoughts, and I realize that I'm no longer in my room, but outside almost to the herbology classroom. I turn around and see James walking toward me, so I stand where I am, apologizing to the people whose way I'm standing in, and wait for him to catch up to me.

Once he's caught up, he pulls me over to a bench and sits us down. "Where were you going? Your first class is way across the castle…"

I look around and shake my head, still trying to figure out what I am doing out here. "I, er… I'm not too sure… I was thinking about talking to Neville about my dad, but I didn't even realize where I was until you called for me."

He let out an irate laugh. "You were going to talk to Neville about your dad?"

I nod warily. "Yes… I wanted to talk to someone who would tell me what they think the _right_ thing to do is rather than what they think I _need_ to do and, since McGonagall isn't here, I feel that is something Neville can do instead."

He gets up off the bench and angrily scoffs. "Seriously?!"

"What, Jamie? Why are you so upset now?"

He throws his hands up, startling a couple of students who were walking behind him, and yells, "Why is it you can talk to everyone else about this stuff with your dad except me?! Why won't you involve me in this?!"

I let out a sarcastic laugh as I shake my head. "I haven't talked to _anyone_ about my ruddy dad, so your argument is invalid! And despite what you think, this has absolutely nothing to do with you and absolutely _everything_ to do with ME!"

He mimics my laugh and rolls his eyes. "Really? That's what you're going to go with? That's the oldest sodding excuse in the book!"

I stand up abruptly and clench my fists angrily. "You don't bloody understand!"

"What? What don't I understand? That you don't trust me with this kind of stuff anymore? Am I too _protective _for this stuff too?"

I slap a hand to my forehead and laugh again, this one a bit more crazed, pacing back and forth in front of the bench I was sitting on as I do. "I don't… I can't…"

"You don't, you can't what? JUST TALK TO ME!"

I stop pacing and drop my hand, glowering at James. "I'M NOT SURE I CAN DO THIS!" I lower my voice as I realize people are staring at us. "I don't know if I can kill my dad. I just… don't know…"

His eyes widen. "_That's_ what this is about? Ari, I'm-"

He reaches a hand out toward me but I jerk away from him. "Sod off." I pick up my books from the bench and furiously walk away from him, stomping through the corridor until I find the room I'm looking for. I wrap my fingers around the large iron handle and pull the heavy wooden door open, storming in as soon as the door is opened wide enough. I walk over to the large red couch in the room and flop down onto it with a loud groan. "Bollocks!"

**James' POV**

"Ariana! Ariana wait!" I try to follow after her, but I stop when I realize I don't actually know what I'm going to say when I find her, so I slowly turn around and walk to my potions class with Professor Slughorn.

I walk into class late, which earns me a detention after classes are over today and leads Slughorn to take ten points from Gryffindor. I irately take my seat next to Freddie and slam my books down on the table, which gets another ten points taken from Gryffindor.

Freddie glances over at me as he adds an ingredient to the potion and sits back down. "What's up, mate?" I grab an ingredient and attempt to put it in the potion but Freddie slaps it out of my hand. "We have to wait ninety five minutes before adding that! Now what's got you so upset?"

I let out a heavy sigh and slump back into my chair. "I got in a fight with Ariana before this."

"What about?"

I cringe as I answer his question. "Er… I'm not really sure. I mean, last night, we fought about the fact that she picked Landen over me to teach her, and then we just fought about the fact that she wanted to go talk to Professor Longbottom rather than me about some doubts she's having… It's just so frustrating that she won't come to me when she has issues…"

He shrugs his shoulders as he plops down into his chair. "Well, you two aren't actually going out anymore, so she really doesn't _have_ to come to you with her problems anymore…"

I hear Rylan, who is at the table next to us, laugh and say "Good riddance, Potter", so I pick up a bat spleen and fling it at him angrily.

I turn back to Freddie, who is poorly attempting to suppress the urge to laugh, and nod with a frown. "Yeah, I know… But I just wish she knew that she could talk to me about these things and that I'm going to be there for her no matter what she says or does."

Freddie smirks as he stirs the potion. "Well I don't think arguing with her and yelling at her is going to tell her that. Besides, you could have any girl you wanted in this school. Why are you focusing on Ariana?"

I let out a groan. "Because _she's_ the only one that I want, Fred! Merlin! When did everything get so crazy?"

He laughs enthusiastically. "I'm going to guess it started the day you first heard 'Hi, my name is Ariana, but you can call me Ari."

I nod my head with a chuckle. "I'm going to guess you're right… What am I going to do?"

He shrugs his shoulders. "Well you could start by-"

His answer is cut off by the _last _person I want to see right now, Monroe. She has a bit of a smirk on her face as she says, "If you ladies are done talking, I would like to speak to Jamie. _Privately_."

I get up and follow her away from the table, but not before I can turn back to Freddie and grimace. "What do you want Monroe?"

She waits until we are in the back of the classroom to talk. She turns around and places a hand on my arm while a sympathetic look covers her face as she speaks. "So I heard Ariana is in fact Queen of the Death Eaters… Who knew the little slut had it in her? Anyways, I just wanted to let you know that I'm sure you're really torn up about this and that I'm here for you if you need me."

I pull my arm out of her grasp and clear my throat. "As uncharacteristically kind of you as that is, your information is, in fact, false. Ariana is _not_ a Death Eater in the slightest so your condolences will not be necessary, but I guess I appreciate your strange attempt at false support."

She opens her mouth, but no noise comes out, which leads me to believe she is in shock, so I take the opportunity to slowly back away from her and walk back to my seat next to Freddie. He raises an eyebrow at me and smirks. "What did Mental Monroe want?"

I shake my head as I sit back down in my chair and gather up my things. "It doesn't matter. I need you to do me a favor and cover for me for the rest of the day. I'm going to go find Ariana and figure out what's going on."

Freddie grins as he rubs his hands together. "Brilliant. What's the ailment going to be this time?"

I shrug. "Let's keep it basic… How about a stomach ache?"

Before he can respond, I get up from my chair and walk to the front of the class and toward the door. "Well Professor, this sure has been loads of fun, but I'm feeling a bit ill so maybe I'll see you in class tomorrow. Who knows? Not me. Either way, try not to miss me too much."

Slughorn looks a bit flabbergasted with me so all he manages to say is "Oh, er, feel better Mister Potter…"

I stifle a laugh as I walk out of the classroom and rush back to Gryffindor tower. Once there, I run into the Heads dorm room, rushing past Eli and Brittney, and run into my room where I drop off my books and grab the Marauders map. I tap the parchment with my wand and mutter, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

I open the map as the crimson ink spreads across the parchment. I look in the transfiguration classroom, which is where Ariana would be right now, but I don't see her name in there at all. After that, I check the herbology building and once again, I fail to see her name. I scan the entire map twice yet I cannot find her on there at all…

Suddenly it hits me; I know exactly where she is. There is only one room that doesn't show up on the Marauders map…

I put the map in my pocket and run out of my room, past Eli and Brittney again, through the Gryffindor common room and back into the corridor. I sprint through the corridor and head in the direction of the Room of Requirements.

**Ari's POV**

I bring the dart in my hand back and focus completely on the center of the board before bringing my hand forward and releasing the dart. I watch it intently as it sails toward the dart board in front of me, hitting just above the center of the board. I grab the next dart and line up my next shot. I take a deep breath and fling the next dart at the board, hitting the board directly in the center. I grin at my accuracy then grab the next dart and line up my final shot.

As I'm about to release my final shot, I hear the door to the room open, so I divert my throw toward the door. At the last minute, I realize who is at the door and wave my hand, causing the dart to shoot to the left when I do. "Sorry…"

James raises his eyebrows as he shuts the door to the room. "Darts? Really?"

I shrug my shoulders. "It gives me something else to focus on for a bit… What do you want, James?"

He smirks as he crosses the room and takes a seat in the couch. "Oh it's James now, huh? I thought we were past that…"

I roll my eyes and wave the darts back into my hands. They race from their transitory locations into my opened hand. "I thought we were past fighting all the time, so I guess we were both wrong, huh?"

He lets out a sigh and pats a spot on the couch. "The only way we're going to get past that is if you talk to me. So come on. I've got all my classes covered, so I could literally bother you _all day._"

I set the darts down on the round table next to me and frown as I walk over and sit on a chair across from him. "Fine. What do you want to talk about?"

He rolls his eyes at me. "Are you really _that_ mad at me?"

"Look, I've had a _lot_ on my mind lately and rather than try to talk about it, you can't get past your stupid jealousy. So yes, I'm really _that_ mad at you…"

He sighs again and leans forward. "Ari, I'm _really_ sorry about that… But I'm willing to listen now!"

I scoff at him. "So as long as I talk on your time you're willing to listen?"

He stands up off the couch and groans. "Damn it Ariana! I'm trying to be here for you but you're being bloody impossible! Would you just talk to me?"

I lean back against my chair and sigh as I run my fingers through my hair. "Alright, fine. But not because I'm not still mad at you! I just _really_ have no idea what to do and it's unbelievably frustrating."

He leans back against the couch and grins at his victory. "I'm all ears."

I roll my eyes as I get up from my chair at the other end of the couch. "I don't know if I can kill my dad…"

"Why not?"

"Well, because it requires killing someone! Who am I to take the life of another person?! No matter who they are or what they've done, don't they deserve a chance to change for the better or be saved?"

He nods warily, as if he thinks my question is a trap of some kind. "Well… Yeah, I guess. But this guy has had multiple chances to change for the better and, so far, he sprinted past them without giving them a second glance. I mean, come on! This is the same guy who used to hurt you! _FOR FUN!_ I'm pretty sure he's bad and plans on staying that way."

"But does that give me a valid reason to become a murderer! If I kill him, it makes me no better than him… I just don't know what I'm going to do…" I place my head in my hands and groan. "What am I going to do?"

He pulls me into hug and sighs. "I… I don't know…"

**Alright yall! As always, I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions about this chapter!**

**I would also like to thank everyone who took the time to leave a review, who added this story to their alerts, and to those who have stuck with this story! I appreciate yalls continuous support with this! :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx :)**


	31. Chapter 31

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha**

**This story is rated T for foul language**

**Chapter 31**

**Ari's POV**

"We'll think of something to do… I promise."

I nod skeptically as I walk James to the door. "Okay…"

He stops me when we get to the door and sighs with a frown. "Why won't you come to dinner?"

I shake my head. "I appreciate your concern, but I'm not hungry right now. Besides, if I _do_ end up getting hungry, I'll just sneak down to the kitchen and get some."

"Alone?"

I let out a laugh as I push him out the door. "Yes alone! I'll be fine!"

He nods as he walks away, but turns back around and says while pointing a finger at me and smirking, "If you're not back in the dorm room by midnight, I'm coming to look for you."

I nod with a small smile. "Alright, fine. If you see Landen, can you tell him that I don't think I'm going to do the occlumency lesson tonight?"

He yells out a quick "okay" before taking off for the great hall, his shoes slapping against the stone floor as he runs down the corridor. I shut the door behind me and take a seat on the couch. I told James I wasn't hungry, but I really just want to think this through a bit more. I mean, James and I talked for hours and still couldn't come up with anything that would end this besides killing him.

(Break)

After spending at least two hours sitting on the couch, I get up and begin pacing around the room angrily. It's not that I don't _want _to kill him; it's just that he's still a living, breathing person. Not a good one, mind you, but still a living person! Suddenly I remember something that stops me in my tracks and raises a new question. "How did he… I need to talk to Bri!"

I hurriedly thank the room then laugh at myself for thanking the room as I run out into the corridor. I look at my watch and see that its ten minutes until midnight, which means that I'm out past curfew without my Head girl badge, so I slow myself down to a brisk walk and concentrate on getting back to Gryffindor tower without being caught. As I continue walking, someone steps out of one of the side corridors in front of me and crosses his arms. "What do you think you're doing over here?"

I narrow my eyes to try and recognize the figure's face, but the corridor isn't lit up enough for me to be able to clearly see it, so I roll my eyes and back away. "I guess I'll go back that way then…"

I run into a solid object that I'm sure isn't a wall and internally reprimand myself for getting caught in this sort of situation. The mass behind me chortles as he grabs my arms and forces me forward. "You won't be going this way either."

I shake my arms free from the grip of the person behind me and place my hands in my pocket before I turn down a corridor located directly between the two boys but, once again, I am forcefully stopped by running into another boy's chest. I can hear him chuckle as he violently grabs my shoulders and spins me around, walking us out to meet with the now three boys waiting for us. "Sorry Brighton, but you won't be going anywhere without talking to us first."

I try to shake my shoulders free from my captors grip, but that only entices him to tighten his already vice-like grip. I quit my struggling with a sigh then try to make out the boys faces again. "I find it a bit rude that you know who I am but I'm left in the dark about your identities…"

The first boy lets out an acidic laugh. "While your play on words was humorous, we're not here to exchange pleasantries. We've been waiting out here for a long time, Death Eater."

The second boy audibly grins while nodding his agreement. "We don't like to be kept waiting…"

I clench my fists in my pockets, which earns the attention of the third boy; the only boy who's chest I hadn't assaulted with my face. "What's that in your pocket? You don't think you're going to use your wand on us do you?"

I roll my eyes and roughly pull my hands out of my pockets, struggling against my captor's grip as I do, to reveal my empty hands. "I, unfortunately, forgot my wand back in my dorm so _no_ I don't think I'm going to use my wand on you lot."

The guy holding me laughs, his grip tightening on my shoulders as he does. "What sort of Death Eater walks around without their wand, utterly defenseless?"

I smirk and shake my head at his misjudgment. "While I may not be a Death Eater, I'm not an idiot either. I said I was without my wand, not that I'm defenseless…"

The guy behind me laughs again. "I don't know… A wizard, good or bad, without their wand is pretty defenseless…"

_You didn't live with my father…_

I smirk again. "That's alright, I actually prefer that you underestimate me… Now, I doubt you waited for me just to talk about how defenseless a wandless wizard is… What do you want?"

The first guy lets out a disapproving huff as he takes a step forward and leans down so our faces are even. "It will do you well to remember that _we_ have _you_ trapped. Not the other way around… You might want to try a bit of humility in this situation, since we severely outnumber you, Death Eater. Now, normally I'm against hurting people, b-"

I roll my eyes and laugh sarcastically. "Why do I get the feeling that sentence is a complete lie?"

A growl escapes his lips as he leans forward more, our noses almost touching and his warm breath brushing against my face. "Don't test me, Death Eater… Your sarcasm isn't easing my friends here."

I roll my eyes again. "Yes because my whole purpose in life is to ease your friends… What the hell are you getting at? Is this charade supposed to frighten me or are is this amateur 'capture' actually going somewhere?"

I see his mouth contort into a sneer as he backs away. "For now, it's just a talk. But if you continue to test my patience, it will become so much more. I'm sure four men could overtake one little girl."

I scoff at him as I silently position my legs and feet for an attack. "How is it fair that you lot are 'men' but I'm a 'little girl'? Only _little boys_ hide their faces in the darkness during a simple 'talk'. Anyways, if this is _just_ a talk, why all the secrecy? Are you too scared to show your faces? Pfft, _men_; you're just a bunch of little immature boys who are in way over their heads."

I hear the first and second guys growl angrily but, before anyone can say or do anything, I stomp on the feet of the guy holding me captive then violently bring the back of my head crashing into his face when he releases my shoulders and bends down to tend to his injured feet.

As soon as my head hits his face I hear the sickening crunch of his nose breaking. He cries out in pain as he shoves me away from him and grasps his nose. I stumble forward into the clutches of the third guy and knee him in the crotch while also elbowing him in the head, not wanting to waste any time in getting away. That plan, however, is hindered by the fact that the third guy pushes me toward the first and second guys across from me. They both catch me by the wrists and each let out a menacing laugh. The first guy's grip is rather tight but the second guy's grip is loose, so I take advantage of the lack of tension by wrenching my arm free from the second guy's grip and kicking him in the stomach. He keels over, clutching his stomach and gasping for breath, so I seize the opportunity and bring my foot up and kick him square in the face, knocking him to the ground, before I turn around and land a punch on the first guy's cheek. He doesn't release his grip on my wrist, but instead, aggressively grabs my other wrist and violently pulls me closer to him so that our chests are flush. "That hurt…"

"Good, that was the goal." I try to wriggle my wrists free but to no avail; his fingers are wrapped tightly around my wrists, tight enough to leave bruises, which means there is no way of getting free now. I attempt to knee him but he anticipates the attack and spins me around, slamming my back into the stone wall viciously and knocking the wind from my lungs, as he stands on my feet to prevent me from kicking or kneeing again.

It takes me a moment to get my breath back, but when I do, the first thing I do is sneer at him and say, "Told you I wasn't defenseless… You might want to watch who you call 'little girl' next time…"

A snarl rips through the corridor as he forcefully slams me back into the wall again and pins my wrists to my chest with one hand while his other hand points his long wand in my face. He opens his mouth to mutter a spell, but before he can, his wand flies out of his hand and someone nails him directly in the side with a body locking spell. The person who shot the spell jogs over and helps me get out of the first guy's grasp. As soon as I'm free from the first guy's grasp and out of the way, the person turns around and lands a heavy right hook against his chin, mutters something to him, then turns back to me. "Are you alright?"

I roll my eyes and smirk as I gingerly rub my wrists. "Impeccable timing, Jamie, as always. What brings you to this part of the castle on this fine evening?"

"I told you I was going to come looking for you if you weren't back in the dorm by midnight… It's now 12:10 and… Bollocks I knew I should have stayed!" He places a hand on my back, but immediately retracts it when I wince away from it.

We hurriedly begin our trip back to the dorm, making sure to talk in hushed tones as we do. "Don't be ridiculous! If you had stayed with me you would have been caught up in that mess too."

He lets out a quiet chuckle as he glances over at me and smirks. "That's true… I wouldn't have been there to save you."

My mouth drops open in fake shock as I jokingly smack him in the arm. "Save me? I'll have you know I had him _right_ where I wanted him!"

"And where was that, exactly?"

I smirk at him as we turn down another corridor. "If you _must_ know, I was lulling him into a false sense of security before initiating my attack!"

He grabs both my arms just below my wrists and gently pushes me back against the wall then places his feet over mine. "Prove it."

I roll my eyes at him and tilt my head to the side. "Jamie, it's late and I'm tired. Besides, I don't want to hurt you… Can we just go back to the dorm please?"

He smirks at me before releasing my arms. "Which is code for, 'Thank you for saving me, Jamie…'" He steps off my feet and flashes me a smug grin before walking away.

I wait until his back is completely turned before I launch myself off the wall and onto his back, lightly wrapping my arms around his neck as if to choke him and locking my legs around his waist as to hinder him from squirming away then grin as I get next to his ear and say, "You were saying?"

He lets out a laugh as he continues walking. "So that was your plan? He didn't really look like he planned on letting you go…"

I chuckle lightly. "He may not have planned on it, but he would have done it. I _am_ rather charming, you know."

"If by charming you mean sarcastic and a bit cynical, then yes, you practically ooze charm."

I roll my eyes at him and slightly tighten my grip around his neck as we walk into the Gryffindor common room. "Prat…"

I hop off his back once we've safely gotten into the Heads common room. Before we go our separate ways, I grab his arm and whisper, "Thanks for coming for me, Jamie."

He nods to me with a smile and whispers, "Always."

I give his arm a squeeze before tip toeing to my room. As soon as I get into my room, I throw myself onto my bed and make a mental note to talk to Brittney about my new question tomorrow before I close my eyes and fall asleep.

**I wonder what Ariana remembered and how does it pertain to her dad? I guess you'll just have to wait and find out! :P**

**Thank you all for being so patient with my slow updates, I really appreciate it. I would love to hear yalls thoughts and opinions about this chapter! I really would! :)**

**I also want to thank everyone who left a review for the last chapter, everyone who added this story to their alerts, and everyone who has kept with this story despite the bad chapters and slow updates! Yall will never understand how much I appreciate youur support!**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx :)**

**P.S. I've started another FF that is along the lines of the hunger games so, for you hunger games fans, I would love if you would give it a read! It's titled "The Challenger's Circle" :) I'm still not too sure if I'm going to continue it, so any comments about it are appreciated and will definitely be taken into consideration. :) Thanks! -Tx**


	32. Chapter 32

**Chapter 32**

**Landen's POV**

I run into the Heads common room and tip toe past a sleeping Eli and Brittney rush into Ariana's room, flinging the door open as I do. "Ariana!"

She stirs a bit, pulling a pillow over her head, but she doesn't wake up so I run over and jump onto her bed, grabbing her shoulders and giving her a shake. "ARIANA!"

She groans as she lifts her hand up and begins groping my face, stopping once she gets to my nose and poking it repeatedly. I pull the pillow off her head and chuckle. "What the hell are you doing?"

She pushes her messy, blonde hair out of her face and glances up at me as she drops her hand. "You mean that's not the snooze button? Then how in Merlin's name do I shut you up so I can go back to sleep?!"

I shake my head as I hop off the bed and pull the covers off of her. "No time to sleep; we're late for transfiguration!"

She abruptly sits upright and looks around anxiously before jumping off of the bed and sprinting into the bathroom. "SHIT! I look like SHIT!"

I roll my eyes and toss her uniform to her. "You don't look that bad. Honestly, you should _really_ concentrate on getting rid of whatever died in your mouth."

She pokes her head out of the bathroom, a toothbrush sticking out of her mouth, and glares at me before pulling her head back into the bathroom and yelling out, "Hey git, how late are we?"

"Not too bad. Only five minutes, but Professor Patil is back today and you know how she hates tardiness…" I gather up her books for class and her temporary wand then take a seat on her bed to wait for her to finish getting ready.

After about ten minutes, she bursts out of the bathroom and grabs her books off the bed and hurriedly pulls me out of the room. We hurdle over Eli and Brittney and sprint into the Gryffindor common room, taking care not to run into anyone as we rush out into the corridor. It takes us only a few moments to get to class since we are sprinting through the corridor to the classroom.

We fly into the classroom, flinging the door open as we enter, and quietly take our seats as we earn an angry glare from Professor Patil. "Mister Raghnall, Miss Brighton, so nice of you two to join us today. Please take your seats and open your books to page 400."

Ariana blushes a bit as we sit down at our table and open our books but, rather than read, Ariana pulls out a piece of parchment and a quill and jots down a quick note before sneakily sliding it over to me.

Thanks for waking me up this morning.

I quickly scrawl my response on there and slide it back.

**It was no problem. We can't have you missing two days in a row now, can we? Where were you yesterday?**

I was in the RoR…

**All day? Alone?**

All day. Alone in the beginning and end, but James was with me for a couple of hours in between then.

**When did you get back into Gryffindor tower?**

A bit after midnight.

**You came back alone after midnight? Did everything go okay?**

I wasn't alone. I met up with James on my way back.

**Oh, okay… So do you still want me to help you with occlumency lessons?**

Yes, of course! Are you still alright with helping me?

**Absolutely! Do you want to do it tonight?**

That will work. I'll meet you in the RoR at eleven tonight?

**That's fine. Is it just going to be us?**

For now, yes. But eventually I think the others should be able to use the room to train in.

**Train?**

Well, yes. You don't just think we are going to be able to face my dad and his army of Inferi and Death Eaters without training first, do you?

**No, I guess not…**

Before I can slide the parchment over to her, it is snatched up off the desk by Professor Patil. She doesn't read it; she just glares down at Ariana and me while she burns up the parchment with her wand. "Since you seem to be done reading, please demonstrate the proper way to turn this book into a bird. Mister Raghnall, you first."

**Ari's POV**

Landen looks over at me with a smug grin as he waves his wand at the book in front of him. The book begins to sprout feathers and swell up, but before it completely transforms into a bird, it explodes loudly, feathers and book pages flying everywhere.

Landen has black scorch marks that char his face and he and Professor Patil both have feathers and page shards littered throughout their hair. Landen spits some feathers out of his mouth as he reaches up and groans when he feels that he's missing an eyebrow and, before I can stop it, the noise of my laughter fills the room as I clutch my sides and laugh uncontrollably.

Professor Patil's face reddens as she pulls feathers out of her hair and yells, "Miss Brighton, this isn't funny!"

A snort escapes as I try to stop laughing, but I can't stop. Between the sight of Professor Patil's head covered in feathers and Landen's charred, one eyebrowed face, I lack the ability to stop my laughter. Landen looks over at me and a laugh erupts from his lips, followed by more laughter. Pretty soon everyone in the class is laughing except for Professor Patil, whose face is getting redder and redder by the second.

Finally, she explodes. She points to the door aggressively, loose feathers falling from her head as she does, and yells, "THAT'S IT! TWENTY POINTS FROM GRYFFINDOR, AND I WILL SEE YOU TWO IN DETENTION TONIGHT! NOW GET OUT OF MY CLASSROOM!"

Landen and I suppress our laughter as we grab our things and hurry out of the classroom into the corridor. As soon as we get out of the classroom and the shut the door behind us, we bust out into a fit of laughter again, leaning against each other for support as we walk back to Gryffindor tower.

Once we have calmed down a bit and made it back to the Gryffindor Heads common room, we join Brittney and Eli, explaining why we aren't in class while we pick feathers and parchment scraps out of each other's hair.

"Okay, wait… You blew up a _bird?"_

Landen shakes his head, loose feathers and parchment falling as he does. "Well, technically I only partially blew it up… It was only _half_ a bird. The other half was my book… Aw damn it! That was my book for class!"

I let out a laugh as I toss my book over to him. "We can share mine." I look over at Eli, who is smirking at me, and chuckle. "What?"

He shakes his head but continues to smirk. "I'm just realizing some things _never_ change…"

"How's that?"

He shrugs his shoulders with a laugh. "Oh let's see… On your first day back you skipped all your classes and now you get kicked out of class! Are you sure that you and I aren't related by blood?"

I roll my eyes and let out a laugh as Brittney smacks him on the arm. I look at Brittney curiously, sure that there was something I was supposed to ask her, but I can't remember what it is. I can faintly hear Eli and Landen talking and laughing with each other but I've delved so far into my memory that it's more like muffled sounds. It takes me a moment, but it all comes back to me; I know what I'm supposed to ask Brittney and her name explodes from my mouth as soon as I remember. "Bri!"

She jumps at the volume I used then turns and looks at me warily. "What?!"

I clear my throat and lean toward her. "Tell me everything you know about Inferi…"

**A bit of a short chapter for you. I would have made it longer, but I figured this was a good place to stop. As alwyas, I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions about this chapter! :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx**


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter 33**

**Ari's POV**

"So you're saying that a wizard could make a polyjuice potion using the hair of the deceased?"

Brittney nods, clearly not sure where I'm going with the question. "Yes, I suppose so… Why?"

I tap my chin, muttering my thoughts aloud as I pace around the room. "So if that's the case, then dad could really be dead, and someone could be using his hair in a polyjuice potion… It definitely plausible seeing as whomever the Dark Lord is did it before with Caledon. Who then, if not dad, is the Dark Lord?"

Landen grabs my arm and forces me to sit down. "Ari, this is crazy. You're over thinking this…"

I shake my head as I pull my arm away from him. "Am I, Lan?"

Brittney scoffs loudly. "Yes! You want for your dad to be innocent so badly that you're cooking up this crazy scheme! It's just like when he was hurting you! You chose to forgive him rather than just leave!"

"If the scheme is so crazy, how do you explain the fact that the Inferius of my dad attacked me and James over winter holiday last year? If he's still alive, how is that possible? Explain that to me, Bri, please!"

She shrugs her shoulders as she continues to give me a concerned look. "Ari, I'm not sure how to explain it, but you really should drop it…" She sees the angry look on my face and immediately adds, "Just for a day! I mean, constantly stressing about this isn't good for your health…"

I let out a sigh as I rub my face with both hands. "And what do you recommend I do? I can't just _make _myself stop thinking about it. It's not like there is some sort of switch I can flip or anything…"

She shrugs again. "You're going to have to think of something. Besides, maybe taking a step back will be the key to figuring this out…"

I nod as I get up from the couch. "I guess… I think of something during the rest of my classes today. Lan, we should get going to our second classes. I'll see you in detention tonight…"

He waves to me with a grin on his face as I exit the Head's common room. I take a deep breath before leaving the Gryffindor common room and heading to my potions class.

(Break)

I laugh as I walk down the corridor with Landen to our detention with Professor Patil. "Yes! I'm telling you, it was the funniest thing I've ever seen! Monroe set her hair on fire in DADA class! Who does that?!"

"I wish I could have seen _that_… By the way, did you figure out what you're going to do to distract yourself?"

I shrug my shoulders, a small smirk playing on my lips. "Nothing yet… Although, watching Monroe set her hair on fire _was_ pretty distracting… Maybe I'll do that again…"

He shakes his head with a laugh. "Your disdain for her is amazing… Seriously though, what are you going to do?"

"I happen to have something in mind…"

I roll my eyes as I glance over at him and see him smirking. "Does this _distraction_ involve James?"

I shrug again. "That's on a need to know basis, and all you need to know is that it will be quite the distraction, okay?"

He holds his hands up defensively and flashes me a knowing grin. "Okay, okay…"

We walk into Professor Patil's classroom and immediately take a seat at our usual table. Professor Patil looks up from her desk and sighs. "You two will be writing lines this evening. 200 lines each of 'I will not disrupt class' ought to help the message sink in…"

I look over at Landen and grimace before pulling out some parchment and a quill and getting started on my lines. I messily scrawl my lines onto the parchment in an attempt to finish as fast as possible; James and I have some things to discuss after this…

(Break)

Landen and I set the finished lines on Professor Patil's desk and, after getting her nod of approval and promising her not to disrupt her class again (yeah right!), we leave the classroom to head back to the common room. When we get back into the Gryffindor common room, Landen heads up to his room and I head into the Head's common room. Ignoring Eli and Brittney, I walk into James' room only to find that it's empty. I walk back out into the common room and sigh. "Where is James?"

Brittney and Eli both shrug their shoulders before Brittney answers. "He said something about following Andromeda…"

"Alone?!" I throw my books into my room and groan. "I could barely walk back from The Room without getting attacked… Why did you let him go alone?!"

Eli laughs and says, "Relax! He said he was going to go find Al first! He's not alone! Besides, he's a big boy, he can take care of himself."

I motion toward the portrait. "Are you coming with me or not?"

Freddie walks out of my room and smirks at me. "Where?"

I point at him then scratch my head. "Why were you...? Never mind… I'm going to go look for James."

He pulls a piece of parchment out of his pocket and grins. "I'll come with. You've managed to go exploring with _everybody else_ except me and I don't appreciate it!"

I roll my eyes and laugh before gesturing him forward. "Yes, because it goes so well for everyone I go exploring with… But, since you're that adamant about it, come on!"

His grin widens as he runs forward and exits the common room with me. As we leave the Gryffindor common room I glance over at the parchment in his hand. "What's that?"

He looks down at his hand and smirks. "Its how we're going to find James." He taps the parchment with his wand and says, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

He unfolds the parchment and I watch crimson ink spread across it, a slow smile spreading on my face as I watch footprints with nametags walk around what looks to be a map. "Fred, this is brilliant. Where did you get it?"

He responds as he studies the map intently. "I nicked it from James, who nicked it from his dad. Do you see his name on here?"

I scan the map for a moment then shake my head. "No, I don't… Wait, I see Al! Eli said that James would be with Al!"

Freddie taps his chin and frowns. "Where is he running off to?"

I shrug my shoulders and nudge him. "There's only one way to find out… He's pretty far across the grounds, so we better hurry."

Freddie nods then pulls me down the corridor behind him as we run to try and catch up with Al. After running for about ten minutes, Freddie pulls me toward a statue and mutters something to it. The statue moves to the side, revealing a secret passage. Freddie goes in first and I follow close behind him.

A few minutes after we enter the passage, we get to the exit and go out into the corridor, running directly into Al and knocking him to the ground. I help Al up and gasp when I see him clearly. He has the start of a black eye and multiple cuts on his face. "Al, what happened to you?"

He shakes his head and grabs my shoulder to balance with one hand while he grips his side with the other and lifts up his left leg so that he's standing on just his right leg. "We got jumped in the corridor."

Freddie crosses his arms. "Why didn't you use your wands?"

"They disarmed us right away… I was on my way to the hospital wing to go get Madam Pomfrey now."

I grab his face, immediately regretting the decision when he winces at the contact, and slowly say, "Where is James?"

He releases his side with a grimace and points down the corridor in the direction that he was running from. "He's that way."

"You left him alone?!" I release his face and pass him over to Freddie. "You two go get Madam Pomfrey. I'm going to go find James."

Freddie nods while Al wraps an arm around Freddie's neck. "We'll be back soon."

I nod then turn and run down the corridor, pulling out my wand and using it to light my path ahead as I whisper, "James? Jamie, where are you?" I continue down the corridor, shining my light down each corridor I pass along the way.

I quickly shine my light down the fourth side corridor then run past it before abruptly coming to a stop. I tilt my head to the side and step backwards until I'm next to the corridor again. I point my wand ahead of me and approach the mass lying on the ground. "Jamie?"

The mass groans as it tries to roll over. I inch closer and hold my wand out so I can identify the mass, vulgarities escaping my lips when I realize its James. I crouch down next to him and purse my lips as I look at his mangled body. His lip is split and bloody and his open mouth reveals a missing tooth. One of his eyes is a deep purple and is swollen shut while the other eye is barely opened. One of his cheeks is also purple and swollen and he has a large gash on his neck. I can also see a small trickle of blood seeping from a cut on his hairline. I sit down flat on the floor next to him, with my legs extended out in front of me, and gingerly lift up his head then set it on my outstretched legs. I use my wand to cut off a chunk of my shirt and press the cloth to the cut on his head with a sigh. "You look like shit, Jamie…"

He flashes me a small smile and, with his raspy voice barely audible, says, "I prefer '_rugged_'…"

"_I_ prefer shit…" I pause for a moment, taking in what I assume is a smug look on his face, and groan. "Sod off… I know what I said and you know what I meant… Jamie, who did this to you and Al?" He tries to sit up but I apply more pressure to the cut on his head and place a hand on his chest. "Sit still, stupid. You're going to make your injuries worse if you try to move around."

He grunts as he lowers back down. "You just sounded American again…" He attempts to look around before asking, "Where's Al?"

I look back in the direction I came from and rub his chest. "He's with Freddie. They went to go get Madam Pomfrey." I hear rapid footsteps coming toward us so I add, "They should be here any minute. I'm going to go show them where you are."

I attempt to stand up but he grabs my shirt and slowly shakes his head. "You could make my injuries worse by trying to move around, you know…"

"You're lucky this cut on your head hasn't clotted yet…" I can hear Freddie yelling for us, so I call out, "Over here, Fred!"

He and Madam Pomfrey come running around the corner into the corridor we are in and sprint over once they see us. Madam Pomfrey gasps when she sees James and whips out her wand. "I can't have him move at all while I bring him back to the hospital wing. Please move, Miss Brighton." She waves her wand and James' body immediately becomes stiff as a board. She levitates him and begins walking away from us, calling out over her shoulder, "Mister Weasley, Miss Brighton, please go back to your rooms. You can visit them in the morning."

I scoff at her as I run to keep up with her brisk movement. "What about his family?"

"I've already notified them! Now go back to your room Miss Brighton!"

Freddie grabs my shoulder and whispers, "We'll go visit them in the morning. Don't worry, mate. They'll be alright. Besides, we have the cloak so we can visit them after tonight whenever we want."

I nod my understanding and walk back to Gryffindor tower with Freddie in silence. Once back, Freddie immediately goes to get Landen, then we all go into the Head's dorm room. After explaining what happened to Al and James to everyone, I tell Freddie and Landen they are welcome to sleep in our common room before excusing myself. I walk into my room and flop down on my bed with a huff. I'll go visit James tomorrow and everything will be perfect because Madam Pomfrey knows what she's doing. "They're going to be alright… They're going to be alright…"

I close my eyes and fall asleep, this mantra the only thing that flows through my brain the entire night.

**You all have been so patient while I wrote this chapter! I'm sorry it took so long to get out! I was feeling rather inspired with my other FF and facing a but of a writers block with this one...**

**I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! I would love to hear what you thought about it! :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx :)**


	34. Chapter 34

**Chapter 34**

**James' POV**

My entire body hurts, and not in an I-just-finished-a-quidditch-work-out sort of way, but more the I-just-got-my-ass-kicked sort of way. I mean, I _did_ just get my ass kicked, but I didn't think it was this bad.

I turn my head to the left and look at Al, every movement inducing a new pain as I do. His eyes are still closed, his chest rising and falling with each breath. I look at the bruises on his face and feel immense guilt for getting him involved in this; for putting him in here. He didn't even know what the fight was about… I hear the door to the hospital wing open, so I close my eyes and pretend to sleep, watching for her through almost completely closed eyes.

"Good morning, Madam Pomfrey. How are they doing today?"

"Good morning, Miss Brighton. They are doing better today. Albus' knee is healing nicely and James' cuts are almost completely healed. James should be able to leave here by tomorrow if things go as planned, although Albus' release is still unknown due to the severity of the break in his knee. You can go visit them if you'd like…"

"Thank you, Madam Pomfrey. And thank you for taking such good care of them." Ariana's footsteps echo throughout the hospital wing as she walks over to Al's bed and replaces the flowers on the table next to his bed. Once that's done, she walks over to my bed and crosses her legs while leaning forward and saying, "So are you going to tell me who attacked you, Jamie?"

I open my eyes and say, "How did you know I was awake? And, as I've been telling you for the past three days, it was less of an _attack _and more of a _fight_…"

She smacks me on the foot and grunts angrily. "Well _who_ did you get in a fight with and _why_?"

I take a deep breath and lightly shake my head. "You're not going to let this go are you?"

She shakes her head while looking at me expectantly. "Not even close…"

"Fine. Al and I sort of got in a fight with Jack Harrison, George Blathers, Nico Ciserono, and Justin Howlier." I watch her face to see if she recognizes the names, but she doesn't seem to know who they are.

She nods, smacking my foot again. "Okay… That still doesn't answer the question as to _why_ though."

I look at her with wide eyes. "You really don't know who they are?"

She shakes her head, her confusion apparent on her face. "Should I?"

"Jack, George, Nico, and Justin are the four guys who cornered you in the corridor a few nights ago…"

She smacks herself on the forehead and groans loudly. "Oh Jamie, you didn't... Did you go _looking _for this fight or were you really out following you-know-who when you ran in to them?"

I shake my head and hold up my hands defensively. "I ran into them by accident…"

She narrows her eyes at me and leans forward. "Don't lie to me, James…"

We both hear the bed next to us creak as Al shifts his weight, both of us looking over just in time to hear Al sleepily say, "You-know-who wasn't even mentioned… He went looking for those guys, and convinced me to go along with him."

"Well you're an idiot for doing that, Al." She turns her gaze away from Al and focuses it on me, her apparently angry gaze burning holes onto my face. "And _you…_ If I weren't afraid it would give you _more_ brain damage, I would seriously consider smacking you in the head! _WHY_ did you feel it was necessary to seek these guys out? People are already scared of us and they already hate us! We don't need to give them any more of a reason to do so!"

I roll my eyes at her and scoff loudly. "We can't just let them push us around though, Ari! They tried to hurt you!"

She shakes her head angrily, her eyes filled with defiance. "Yes, and we dealt with it that night! Going after them again the night after, completely unprovoked, was not alright! Look where it got you and Al!"

Madam Pomfrey storms over and angrily tells us to quiet down. "How many days am I going to have to tell you two to keep it down? I still have patients who require sleep to get better, so keep it _quiet!_ Don't you have class in a few minutes, Miss Brighton?"

Ariana looks at her watch and lets out a sigh before hopping off my bed and glaring at me. "We're not done talking about this, James…"

She gives Al one last pitying look before turning and walking out of the hospital wing. As soon as she's gone, Al chuckles as he says, "You must really be in trouble…"

I glance over at him and raise an eyebrow. "Why do you say that?"

He smirks at me and says, "She called you James! She _never_ calls you James!" His grin fades and his tone changes to something more serious. "She's right, you know. We have more than enough enemies right now; we don't need to add any others to that list. We should be doing everything we can to get people to like us, not hate us… Why did we fight these guys? Why did we even have to do _anything _to them?"

I let out a heavy sigh and rub my hands over my face. "I don't know… I guess I just didn't want them to think they could simply get away with trying to hurt Ariana, or any of us for that matter, and not have to deal with any consequences…"

Al lets out a loud laugh, which earns a glare from Madam Pomfrey, so he mouths an apology to her then grins at me as he whispers, "James, she may not have grown much physically since we've known her, but she's definitely grown up a lot mentally and emotionally. She resilient, and _definitely_ doesn't need us protecting her anymore. She may need our help every now and again, but she doesn't need us to do things for her anymore. She knows how to take care of herself, for the most part, and the sooner you understand that, the less you two will argue…"

I flash a skeptical look and a slight smirk at him. "Yeah, I guess you might be right…"

His eyes widen and his mouth falls open a bit. "I _might _be right? If I had a wand, I would hex you into next week! Of course I'm right, you git!"

Madam Pomfrey walks over to Al's bed, silently interrupting our conversation, and checks on his injuries. After a few moments, she smiles at him and says, "It should only be another day before you're completely healed and ready to get back to your classes."

He flashes a smile at her and politely says, "Thank you Madam Pomfrey."

She nods to him before turning to me and checking on me. After a few minutes of poking and prodding, she steps back and says, "You're free to go, Mister Potter. And, I know I say to come back if you need anything, but please refrain from needing anything. I see you here more than I saw your father back when he was a student here, and I saw quite a bit of him. So, please avoid any potentially dangerous situations so that you don't have to come back here again…"

I slide out of the bed and grin at Madam Pomfrey. "Oh absolutely. I've learned my lesson and I will be sure to avoid all dangerous situations from now until the end of time."

I sneakily smirk over at Al before leaving the hospital wing, knowing that both he and Madam Pomfrey are fully aware that I have no intentions of staying out of trouble, but enjoying the fact that they have both gone through this enough times to know better than to call me out on it.

I slowly make my way through the corridor to potions class, thinking of different pranks, a single nagging thought making the process rather difficult.

_If Ariana can change, why can't I?_

**You lovely readers have been so patient with me! I know this update has taken forever, and this is a bit of a short chapter, but I do have a valid excuse! Along with being rather busy with work, school, and my sorority, I also had some writer's block with this chapter. I had multiple ways this chapter could have gone, and picking one and sticking with it was actually harder than I thought, so I hope you enjoyed the direction I decided to go with it! :)**

**I want to thank everyone who added this story to their alerts, those who have reviewed this story, and those who have continued to read this story despite the obscene amout of time it has taken me to update. I love and appreciate all of you! :)**

**I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions about this chapter! Really, I would! :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx**


	35. Chapter 35

**Chapter 35**

**Ari's POV**

Rich sun rays stream through the long window next to me and rest upon my table, lighting the potions textbook in front of me, reminding me that I should be outside enjoying the weather rather than sitting in the library studying. The library is mostly quiet; the only sounds that echo are the soft murmurs between students and the rustling of book pages being turned. I turn my own book page and let out a bored sigh just as Landen, who is sitting on the sill of the window next to me and staring outside, shifts into a more comfortable position. "I wonder who invented the hug…"

I glance up from my textbook and give Landen a concerned and curious look. "Where the hell did that come from?"

He shrugs his shoulders as he continues to stare outside. "Just a thought, I guess. But seriously, how do you imagine that went? The first hug, I mean…"

I counter his shrug with a smirk on my face. "I imagine it was a bit awkward and that the person on the receiving end was rather concerned as to why someone was squeezing them."

He lets out a laugh and nods while glancing over at me. "That's how I think it might've gone also… It was probably really funny to watch…" He looks down at my book and scrunches his nose up. "What page are you on?"

I glance back down at the book resting on the table in front of me and breathe out a sigh of relief. "394…"

"So you're finally done?" I nod, packing up my things, as Landen hops down off the window sill. "Perfect. Let's go work on your occlumency lessons."

I groan loudly, slumping my shoulders over in a pout. "Aw, Lan! Do we _have_ to? We've done them every night this week! I deserve a day off…"

He raises an eyebrow at me with a smirk. "Okay, what else did you have in mind?"

I grin wickedly at him. "Well, Freddie and Eli _did_ prank me over holiday, and I _still_ haven't gotten them back, so we could do that…"

"I'm in." He quickly looks around before leaning in closer to me and whispering, "Do you have anything in mind?"

"Er, sort of…" He tilts his head to the side, his confusion apparent, so I clarify. "I know how to get Eli back, but I'm still not too sure how to deal with Freddie."

He nods absentmindedly while whispering, "How are you going to get Eli back?"

My impish grin returns as I layout my plan to him. "Eli is actually quite terrified of birds, and I just so happen to be really good at the _Avis_ spell, so I thought I would use that to my advantage by filling something of his with loads of birds…"

He nods again, this time more focused on the conversation. "That'll work… You know, if you want to stick with the fear theme, you just need to get Freddie in front of a boggart to figure his fear out."

I throw my hands up in excitement, a large grin spread across my face. "Landen Raghnall, you're sodding brilliant! I knew there was a reason I kept you around!"

"You mean a reason _other_ than my stunning good looks and sparkling personality?" He grins at me as I roll my eyes then adds, "I think I know where we can get a boggart, too."

I hold my book tightly to my chest with one hand while gesturing in front of me with the other, a smirk on my face. "I guess you and your ego better lead the way then, huh?"

He flashes me a toothy grin and a wink as he walks past me. I follow behind him as he hastily guides us through multiple corridors and up a flight of stairs, stopping abruptly when we get to a classroom. He reaches to open the door but I smack his hand away before he can even reach the handle, angrily hissing, "What the hell are you doing, Lan? Are you mental? This is the DADA room!"

He nods and slowly says, "Yes, I know… What's your point?"

I scoff at his absurdity and smack him on the arm. "My _point_ being that this is Andromeda's classroom! It's a bad idea to take _anything_ from her!"

"We aren't _taking_ anything, per se…" He fights the urge to smile so the corners of his mouth twitch upward. "…It's more like borrowing. We'll bring it back, I promise!"

I roll my eyes and shake my head. "Fine. Get two… I'll keep watch out here. Shout if something goes wrong in there."

He nods with a grin. "Be back in a flash…"

He swiftly but silently goes into the DADA classroom, quietly shutting the door once he's in, so I walk across the hall and take a seat on the floor, opening my potions book so I can read while I wait. After about fifteen minutes, Landen comes back out of the room looking a bit disheveled, with two small trunks under his arm. "Got 'em. Let's go before Andromeda gets back."

I push myself up off the floor with a grin and follow him to the Room of Requirements. Once inside, he sets the trunks down on the floor and flops down onto a couch that the room created. "That was more difficult than I imagined…"

"Was Andromeda in there?"

He shakes his head before pointing to the trunks. "What now?"

I pull out my wand and wave it at the trunks while quietly murmuring a spell. The two trunks jump up, a bright red paper wrapping itself around each box before two gold bows appear on top of the two freshly wrapped presents. "Here's what we're going to do…"

(Break)

"Do you want to go over the plan again?"

Landen shakes his head, a devious grin on his face "No, I'm good. I'll go get Freddie now and, once we're back, I'll grab Eli too and bring them both in here. See you in a bit!"

He walks out of my room, passing James along the way. He looks at the two presents sitting on my bed and gives me a puzzled look. "Whose birthday is it?"

I shake my head as I make sure everything is set perfectly. "Nobody's birthday. I'm finally getting Eli and Freddie back for shrinking my pants during holiday."

"What happened to 'My revenge will be swift' and all that?"

I shrug my shoulders. "I've been a bit preoccupied… Can you bring me two pieces of parchment and a quill please?"

He nods before crossing the room and grabbing two pieces of parchment off my dresser and handing me his quill. I graciously take the parchment and quill from him then quickly jot down two notes before attaching them to the boxes and sticking them under my bed. Once I've finished that, I hand James his quill back and look him up and down before asking, "How're you feeling?"

He shrugs his shoulders. "Still sore, but definitely better... How are you feeling?"

I roll my eyes at him and smirk. "_I'm_ feeling great, but _I _wasn't just released from the hospital wing yesterday so I don't see how that's relevant. When does Al get released?"

"He's scheduled to be released tomorrow… He-"

He's cut off by the sound of Landen's voice yelling, "Hey Freddie? Could you and Eli go get my potions book from Ari's room? I think it's under her bed…"

I look over at James with wide eyes and hiss, "Hide!"

He pulls the invisibility cloak out of his pocket and motions for me to join him, a grin spread across his face. I comply, rushing over to him and grabbing his arm, pulling him over to a corner. He drapes the cloak over us just as Eli and Freddie enter my room.

Freddie looks over at Eli and groans. "I don't know why Lan needed _both_ of us to get his _one little_ book…"

Eli shrugs his shoulders before dropping to the ground next to my bed. "Who cares? Let's just find the book and get out o-"

"Hey!" Freddie comes up from the ground with a gigantic grin, two crisply wrapped presents in his hands. "These are labeled for us! I wonder what they are… Should we open them?"

Eli nods rapidly, beaming as he does. "Oh absolutely! If Ari didn't want us to find them and open them, she would have done a better job hiding them!"

Freddie tosses one of the presents to Eli and, after they've both ripped the wrapping paper off the trunks, he says, "Alright, we'll open them together on the count of three…"

Eli nods his understanding. "One..."

"Two…"

"Three!"

They both flip up the latches on the front of the trunk and lift the lids, a loud scream emitting from both of them when they see their biggest fears sitting in front of them. Freddie pulls out his wand as he backs away from the figure in front of him and groans, "Why did it have to be a _clown?_"

**Alright yall, lemme know what ya thought! :)**

**Thanks to everyone who added this story to their alerts and to those left a review last chapter! I really appreciate it!**

**I apologize for the wait, school has been hectic already... I'll try to update as soon as possible, but I can't make any promises as to how soon that will be.**

**Thanks! :)**

**-Tx**


	36. Chapter 36

**Chapter 36**

**Freddie's POV**

I stare at the clown advancing toward me through wide eyes, immediately remembering the whole reason I'm terrified of clowns in the first place.

I had been eight years old when I encountered my first clown and my fear began. Mum and dad had decided to take me and Roxanne to the circus. Not a wizarding circus either, but a muggle circus, complete with tents, ring leaders and clowns. I had wandered away from my parents and began exploring the different areas around the circus when I found myself inside a tent with a group of clowns. I stood and watched them talk and interact, completely fascinated by them. That is, until one of them saw me. He glared at me and yelled for the other clowns to grab me as he hurriedly led them toward me, all wearing the same devious grins on their faces as they did. I grimaced as I ducked under and dodged the multiple arms swinging for me while I ran away from them. One of them managed to grab me by my shirt collar and hauled me over to the leader, who immediately began demanding answers. "Wha' are you doin' 'ere lad? Are you a spy?"

I shook my head rapidly then asked, "There are spies for clowns?"

The lead clown grabbed a large yellow balloon and gripped it tightly, gnashing his teeth together as he said, "Are you sure you're not a spy? Because we 'ave ways o' taking care o' spies…" Suddenly the balloon in his hands pops loudly, causing me to jump at the noise.

I shook my head again, my eyes quickly getting wider and wider with fear. The clown laughed and waved off the clown holding me by my collar. "Le' 'im go, ma'e. We've go' a show to do." He glanced at me and adds, "Don' come back 'ere again, lad, or I'll do to you wha' I did to the balloon."

I managed a squeak of understanding as the clown holding me relinquished his grip on me and I fall to the ground. I pushed myself up off the ground and, with dust flying up behind me, I sprinted away from the tent and the group of clowns, never to see them again and forever fearing clowns from that moment on.

The sound of Eli loudly yelling spells at the large bird attacking him snaps me out of my memory and brings me back to the room. I immediately launch into firing every aggressive spell and hex I know at the clown, none of which work. I twirl my wand absentmindedly as glare at him and try to figure out how to beat him. I glance at the box I found him in, an idea popping into my head the moment I see it. I wave my wand at him and, while picturing Professor Slughorn in a dress and large hat, I say "Riddikulus."

I grin triumphantly as the clown quickly transforms into Professor Slughorn dressed in a long, yellow sundress. Eli follows my lead and breathes a heavy sigh of relief when it works. "Thank Merlin…"

Suddenly Ariana appears in the corner of the room, followed by James, and yells, "How'd you know?"

I smirk at her with a shrug. "I'm too smart for you, Ari. You're going to have to work harder than that if you want to prank the prank king…"

"Hey!" James throws his hands up at me exasperatedly. "I believe _I_ am the pranking king, thank you very much!"

I roll my eyes and nod, mostly to appease him, and wave him off. "Yeah, yeah…" I walk over to the door and, before I leave, I add, "Hey, Ari? Come find me when you have a _real_ prank."

I hear her grunt and stomp her foot as I walk out of the room, Eli following closely behind me. As soon as we get out into the Heads common room, Brittney looks at Eli then me and inquires, "What was with all the noise in there? Did you find Landen's book?"

I shake my head while glancing at Landen, shooting him an I'll-get-you-back-for-that sort of look, and say, "No, I didn't find his book, but I don't think that's what he sent me in there for…"

Brittney gets a quizzical look on her face as she looks over at Landen. "Wait, what?"

Eli smirks and says, "Ari tried to prank us… And _apparently_ Landen here was in on it…"

Landen shakes his head and shrugs nonchalantly. "I have no idea what you're talking about. I just wanted to study…"

Brittney angrily smacks him in the arm. "It's bad enough that _she_ feels the need to stoop to their level, but I thought _you _would know better than that! I'm so disappointed in you Landen!"

With that, she pushes herself up off the floor and marches into Ariana's room, slamming the door shut behind her. Landen looks at me and Eli then slowly rises up off the floor. "Well, it was nice to see you two, but I'll just be heading off to go study in the sanctity of my own room…" He awkwardly backs away from us, being sure to keep his eyes locked on us the entire time. He finally makes his way out of the room, stumbling over a raised bit of the carpet as he walked out.

As soon as he's gone, Eli turns to me with a devilish grin and says, "What do you say we teach Miss Ariana Elizabeth Brighton how a real prank is pulled?"

I nod to him with an equally devious grin. "Why Eli, I do believe that is the best idea you've ever had… We need something that will completely blow her mind…" I tap my chin for a moment then let out a mischievous laugh. "I think I know _just_ what to do… Eli, are you afraid of the forbidden forest?"

We walk over to the window and look out onto the dark, expansive forest. I glance over at him and see a smirk spread on his face before he responds. "No, but Ari is about to be…"

**I would like to start off by apologizing for the extreme delay in this post! Things have been rather hectic since school started up again, but I'm going to do my best to update ASAP. I hope yall don't hate me too much... lol**

**I would also love to hear your thoughts about this chapter! What did you love? What did you hate? Do you have any ideas?**

**Thanks for your unbelievable support with this story! You all have no idea how much it means to me! :)**

**-Tx**


	37. Chapter 37

**Chapter 37**

**Ari's POV**

"…which is why it is believed that werewolves still live in the Forbidden Forest today. Any questions?"

I raise my hand high in the air, clearing my throat when Professor Tate acknowledges me. "Professor, how many werewolves are living in the forest?"

He shakes his head as he answers. "It's unknown if there are _any_ werewolves living in the forest, let alone an actual number of how many. Their current inhabitance there is merely speculation."

I nod, glancing over at Landen, Freddie and James with a mischievous smirk. They all reciprocate my smirk before Professor Tate announces the end of the lecture and dismisses the class. Landen, James, Freddie and I all rush into the corridor and convene next to a suit of armor, where James the first to speak. "So when are we going to going to head into the forest?"

I shrug my shoulders while looking around at all of them. "How about tonight?"

Freddie shakes his head while Landen and James nod. "I can't tonight. I'm studying with Roxie tonight and I can't get out of it at all. You lot go ahead though and let me know what you find!"

I glance around at James and Landen then shrug my shoulders as I agree to comply with Freddie's request. "Alright fine, but you're really going to be missing out."

Freddie returns my shrug as he waves to us and walks away. James smirks as he calls out after Freddie, "HAVE FUN AND STUDY HARD!"

Freddie throws up an arm to let James know that he received the message before he disappears around a corner into another corridor. Once he's walked out of view, Landen, James and I begin our planning of tonight's adventure.

(Break)

"Jamie, you've got the invisibility cloak?"

James groans as he replies, "Yes Ari! I had the last two times you asked and I have it now! I have the map and I have my cloak so you can stop checking!"

I roll my eyes, a small smirk playing at my lips as I poke my head out of my room and look at James, who is sitting on the couch in the Head's common room. "You better watch yourself, Potter… There's nothing stopping me from coming out there and jinxing you into next week, you know…"

He looks over at me and grins deviously as he picks up a wand and twirls it skillfully. "There is if _I_ have your wand…"

I internally kick myself as I scowl at him and exit my room, marching across the common room and snatching my wand from his hands. "If we end up finding a werewolf, I'm giving _you_ to it as a sacrifice…" He lets out a chuckle as I flop down next to him on the couch and groan. "Where the hell is Landen?"

The moment the question leaves my mouth, the portrait that leads into the Head's dorm swings open and Landen clambers in breathing heavily. "S-sorry I'm late! I got detention in my last class and just finished serving it…"

I hop up off the couch, pulling James up with me as I do, and nod my understanding as I push Landen and pull James out of the common room. Once we get out into the corridor, I release the boys from my grip and allow them to walk freely. We sneak our way through the corridors in silence, all lost in thoughts about what we might find in the forest.

The last time I ventured into the forest at night, it was to save Al from my dad and it ended up being a trap. Who knows what we might find in there tonight…

We're almost outside when we inadvertently run into Ashlynn and Monroe, who are smiling and laughing. As soon as they see us, their smiles fade, only to be replaced by scowls of displeasure. Ashlynn leans over to Monroe and loudly says, "Looks like the _slag_ is back… Two boys now instead of one!"

I roll my eyes and sigh dramatically. "Ladies, I thought we were over this namecalling shit…"

Landen smirks as he quietly says, "Clearly not…"

Monroe laughs bitingly at Ashlynn's comment before she turns her attention to James. "Jamieboo, I know we've had our differences in the past, but I'm _more_ than willing to take you back despite the fact that you completely shattered my heart. You know I'll always love you."

James' eyes widen as his discomfort with the situation grows. "I… Uh… We… No… I-"

I step forward and cut him off, clasping my hands together as I try to save James from the situation. "Well, although this conversation has been sufficiently awkward, we _really_ should be going so, if you two would please move yourselves out of the way…"

Monroe ignores my request and continues to look at James, who continues to stare at her with a shocked expression on his face, and repeats her previous statement. "You know I'll _always_ love you, Jamieboo…"

James shakes his head, clearing himself from the stupor he was in and responds as nicely as he can. "Monroe, you are a complete nutter and we are _never_ going to get back together… While you may always love _me,_ Merlin help me, I do not return the feelings at all whatsoever."

Monroe's face contorts into one of complete and utter pain, which almost makes me feel bad for her, before it changes into one of pure rage. "James Sirius Potter, I will make you regret this day!"

Landen and I have to stifle the urge to laugh as James rolls his eyes as he murmurs, "Not as much as you've made me regret the day I first met you…"

Monroe flies into a frenzy when she registers what James just said, angrily lunging at him, only to be held back by Ashlynn, who is quietly attempting to calm Monroe down as Monroe screams and swings her arms and kicks her legs in an attempt to injure James.

Landen, James and I take a moment to take in the scene in front of us before using Monroe's angry screams as a cover to sneak outside. Once outside, we break into a sprint toward the forest, only slowing down when Monroe's screams have become inaudible. As the three of us bend over and attempt to catch our breath, Landen chuckles and says, "Wow, mate… Just… wow."

James manages a laugh as he nods his agreement. "I know, mate. She really is bonkers!"

I smirk at James before saying, "And now she's got it out for you!"

He scowls at me before glancing over to the forest. "I'd rather deal with a werewolf…"

My smirk turns into a grin as I stand upright and pull out my wand. "Well then, _Jamieboo_, you're in luck! We just happen to be hunting for werewolves tonight!"

James and Landen both pull out their wands and nod to me, grins spread across both their faces as we make our way toward the forest. Once inside the tree line, we light up our wands and, after casting wary glances around, we march ahead, deeper into the forest.

The first ten minutes in the forest are fine but, the moment I hear a branch snap, I let out a gasp and grab James' arm as my head whips around to look for the source of the noise. It takes us a moment of looking around, but we eventually realize it was me who broke the branch so I release James' arm and continue to lead on, ignoring the continuous snickering I can hear coming from James and Landen behind me.

After walking through the forest for almost an hour, jumping at the sound of every snapping branches and bush rustling, we decide to take a break. We all lean back against different trees and wipe the perspiration off our faces before Landen speaks up. "I don't think we're going to find anything here…"

I breathe out a sigh and voice my agreement. "I don't think so either. I was really hoping we would though!"

James clears his throat and asks, "What exactly were you planning on doing if we ended up finding a werewolf out here?"

Landen smirks and adds, "Good question, mate! I mean, you practically ripped James' arm off when you broke that branch! I can only imagine what you would do if we found an actual werewolf…"

I roll my eyes as the boys laugh, picking a stick up off the ground and heaving it at Landen, who dodges it and sticks his tongue out at me. "Shut it you gits! I don't know what I'd do…"

My stick falls to the ground, rustling some fallen leaves on the ground as it does. Immediately after the stick rustles the leaves, a louder rustling sound emits from a bush behind Landen, which causes all of us to quickly jump up off the ground and hold our wands out in front of us defensively. We stare at the bush for a moment before hearing an ear piercing howl echo throughout the forest. I look over at the two boys and grin as I say, "…but there's only one way to find out, huh?"

I can see that both James and Landen are about to protest so, before they can talk me out of anything, I take off in a sprint toward the area where the howl seemed to originate. I can hear the boys following behind me but, rather than wait for them to catch up, I continue on, hurdling over exposed roots and ducking under low hanging branches, completely consumed with the need to find the source of the loud howl.

I hear the sound of heavy movement off to my left so I push off a tree and front of me and change my course so that I'm following the new sound instead. As I chase the noise, I manage to stumble on a few exposed tree roots, cursing loudly when I get tripped up.

After chasing the noise for a bit, I decide it's time for another break since I've lost the noise completely and I'm utterly exhausted, a stitch in my side beginning to form from the constant running. Finally the boys catch up to me, both breathing heavily and shooting me dirty looks as they rest against a tree and attempt to catch their breath.

James, after he feels he's adequately caught his breath, looks up and says, "How about you warn us the next time you want to-"

I hear leaves rustling again so I hold up a finger to silence him so that I can hear more clearly. I hear the noise again so I grin at him as I quickly say, "I'm running again!"

I break into another spring, quickly running after the noise, letting my eyes dart around in every direction with the thought that I might catch a glimpse of something as I do. I hear another howl, but this time it's behind me. I look back and immediately regret it when I feel something aggressively hit me against the exposed side of my face, sending me crashing back down to the ground and knocking my wand from my hand as another loud howl rings out throughout the forest, this time closer to me. I can feel a bit of blood trickling down my face as I quickly search around the forest floor for my wand, internally cheering when I find it. I jump up off the ground and gasp when I come face to face with one of the sources of the howling.

**Oh man! Do yall think Ari found her werewolves? How do you think Monroe is going to make James regret rejecting her? So many questions! Haha**

**I would like to apologize for the length of time that it took for me to get this chapter posted and I hope that you lovely readers felt that it was worth the wait! I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions about the chapter! Really, I would! They totally keep me motivated to write and post faster! :)**

**I would also like to thank the amazing people who left a review for the last chapter, the people who added this story to their alerts, and the people who have been reading this story from the beginning. I absolutely appreciate yalls support and really want yall to know that. :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx :)**


	38. Chapter 38

**Chapter 38**

**Ari's POV**

Once again the figure howls, this time with a smirk on his face, before saying, "You're just so easy to trick!"

I jump up off the ground and smack him in the chest as I yell, "FREDDIE! YOU INSUFFERABLE TOSSER!" I turn around and see that James and Landen have caught up to me and are both glaring at Freddie while they catch their breath.

Freddie continues to smirk at me, his expression resembling that of a giddy child, but before he can respond, Eli comes running around the corner and slides to a stop next to Freddie, a serious expression on his face as he attempts to catch his breath before saying, "You… You all are going to want to see this… Follow me, but tread quietly."

I wipe the still flowing blood from my face and nod, grabbing hold of Eli's shirt and forming a train as the remaining three follow suit and grab onto the backs of the shirt in front of them. We all tiptoe through the eerily silent forest, Eli leading the way, the lot of being equally as silent, knowing only where to go by following the body of the person in front of us. After sneaking through the forest for a few minutes, Eli stops abruptly and turns around to face us. I'm about to question why we've stopped and where he's led us when I hear what caused his concern.

"You few students 'ave decided to follow Lord Brighton, but we need more! We need more followers if we are to follow through wis our plans! So I need you, new brozerhs and sisterhs, to find more people to join our family! I warn you, do not trust just anyone. Ariana Brighton and her friends are hated, but if ozher students see that she is innocent, that she isn't one of us, they will join togezher and follow her. Now, lift up your left sleeve so I can give you ze mark of our family."

I creep forward and peer around the tree trunk I'm hiding behind. I see about ten boys and girls, all of different houses, standing in a single file line. I watch Andromeda approach the first boy in line, a fourth year from Ravenclaw named Joshua Abernathy, and pull out her wand before she moves in front of him completely, blocking my view of what she's doing.

It only takes her a few moments to finish with Joshua, but it's more than enough time to see who else is there. There are a total of three Ravenclaws: Joshua and third year and fifth year siblings Jenny and Jamie Singleton. There are two Hufflepuffs: Second year Lilly Fitzpatrick and fifth year Robert McKinty. There are four Slytherines: Sixth year Roald Zabini, third year Alicia Songtree, seventh year Lowell Eltron and first year Partridge Parkinson and there is one Gryffindor: Alec Darkbloom. The moment I catch sight of Alec, it takes every fiber of my being to stop myself from running to him and punching him in the face but, by clenching my teeth and fists, I practice a fair amount of restraint and continue to watch the events that are playing out in front of me.

Andromeda continues down the line and does something I can't see to the remaining students forearms with her wand before welcoming them to the "family", telling them to find more recruits and dismissing them.

Eli, Freddie, Landen, James and I all hide in nearby bushes as the newly inducted students and Andromeda exit the forest. We wait until we can't hear their loud footsteps and echoing voices anymore, then we wait a few minutes longer, before crawling out of the bushes and gathering in a tight circle. Before anyone can even _begin_ to talk about what we just saw, Landen says, "We should head back to the Head's common room now…"

We all nod our agreement then, in a single file line, we slowly and silently make our way out of the Forbidden Forest, only the moon overhead lighting our way. Once we've exited the forest and gotten back into the castle, it takes us no time at all to sneak back to the Heads dorm.

The moment we get in and the portrait swings shut, Brittany and Al come storming out of my room demanding answers. "WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU FIVE BEEN? IT'S FREAKING TWO O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING! I WAS WORRIED _SICK_!"

Freddie gives Brittany a quick peck on the cheek before saying, "Alright, well I'm just going to address the elephant in the room. Ari, you're a bloody idiot."

I let out a scoff and throw my hands up as Al patiently takes a seat on the couch. "_WHAT?!_"

He glances around the room before continuing. "Well! I mean _come on_! There's not even a full moon tonight and you thought you were going to find a werewolf in the forest? _Really_?"

Landed visibly attempts to contain his laughter as he steps between me and Freddie, preventing me from attacking Freddie for his ridiculous claim. "How about we talk about what we just saw Andromeda doing with those students in the forest…"

Brittany looks at all of us, confusion painting her every feature. "Wait, what did we miss?"

I shake my head and scoff again. "_How about_ we talk about the fact that _ALEC DARKBLOOM_ was in that line of students! What the hell was that?!"

Everyone in the room shrugs nervously as Brittany snorts in frustration. "WHAT. DID. YOU. GUYS. SEE?"

James, Landen, Freddie, Eli and I all cast uneasy glances to each other before James takes a seat next to Al and begins explaining what happened in the Forbidden Forest. "Well Al, Brittany, let's start from the beginning. Tonight Landen, Ariana and I went into the forest to look for werewolves. We thought we had found some too when we heard a bit of howling resonating throughout the forest, but-"

I glare at Eli and Freddie as I cut James off. "BUT it turns out we found the ever common bloody wankers instead!"

Freddie scoffs and raises his eyebrows at me. "OI! I am most certainly _NOT_ common! I am-"

James rolls his eyes and interjects. "Are you lot going to let me finish the story or not?!"

We all nod in silent unison for James to continue, guilty looks on all our faces as we do. James clears his throat and continues the story. "As I was saying… We thought we had found some werewolves, but we only found Freddie and Eli, who were successfully pranking Ari." He sees that I'm about to object to his claim so he quickly adds, "Yes Ari. They successfully pranked you. Don't try to deny it either!"

I flop down onto the floor and pout, my arms crossed tersely against my chest. "Whatever… I knew it was them the whole time…"

James rolls his eyes once again and turns to look at Al and Brittany, who are sitting next to each other and watching James intently as he, making sure not to leave anything out, continues his account of the story. When he gets to the part about Andromeda doing something to their forearms, I interject once again. "Did any of you see what she put on their arms?"

The four boys each shake their heads, confusedly looking at each other as Freddie says, "I'm not really sure… Why did she choose to put in on their forearm? Are she and Ari's dad trying to copy Voldemort's dark mark thing?"

Brittany, who had been silent throughout the entire recollection of the story, chimes in. "Isn't it obvious? The forearm is easy to hide and easy to access. If they want to show it off they can but, if they want to hide it, they can do that as well. It's genius, really…" She lets out a heavy sigh and zones out, staring blankly at the crackling fire.

Eli scoffs at Brittany while nudging me with his foot. "Uh-oh Ari…"

I smirk up at him and stifle the urge to laugh. "Uh-oh Eli…"

Al raises an eyebrow at us and clears his throat. "Er, what 'uh-oh'?"

Brittany snaps out of her stupor and angrily says, "If either of you mention a 'nerdgasm', so help me Merlin, I'm going to murder you both!"

Eli and I both burst into a fit of laughter while Brittany glares daggers at us and Freddie, James, Al, and Landen look at us quizzically. After Eli and I have calmed down, we all sit around the room, each silently lost in our own thoughts. After what seems like hours, the silence is broken by,

"He really is going to attack American muggles, huh?"

I look up from the carpet that I had been staring at and see Al watching me with concern on his face. I nod my head slowly as I respond. "Yeah Al… He really is…"

He nods and takes a deep breath before asking, "And he's really using other students from Hogwarts to help him?"

I nod again, noting the fact that now everyone is watching us talk, and somberly say, "Yeah…"

Al takes a moment to put everything together then jumps up off the couch and exclaims, "Then we have to do something! We have to stop him!"

I smirk at him and nod once again. "Yeah, we do Al. You have anything in mind?"

Al shakes his head just as James shrugs his shoulders and plainly says, "Well, first we have to stop Andromeda from recruiting any other students. Once we've done that, we can figure out where to go from there."

Brittany looks over at James and grins. "When did _you_ become the voice of reason?"

James winks at her and grins. "Mind blowing, right? I'm about to do it again too. It's almost four in the morning and five of us have classes tomorrow. I recommend we all head off to bed and talk about this again tomorrow."

We all nod our agreement, some of us replying with an audible yawn as well before saying our goodnights and heading into our designated rooms, bidding Al farewell when he leaves to go back to the Slytherine's dungeon.

I say goodnight to everyone one last time before adjourning into my room and flopping down onto my bed in a heap of exhaustion, convincing myself that we will figure things out tomorrow before falling into a nightmare filled sleep.

**I hope this update came faster for yall! I worked really hard at getting it out in a timely manner _just for yall!_ I hope you all enjoy it!**

**As always, I would like to thank everyone who is reading and sticking with this story! You all will never know how much I truly appreciate your support!**

**I would absolutely love to hear your thoughts and opinions about this chapter! I love yalls reviews! I _feeeeed_ on them! haha But seriously, yalls reviews definitely keep me writing and help me to update faster, so I would really appreciate some reviews! :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx :)**


	39. Chapter 39

**Chapter 39**

**Ari's POV**

I push myself up onto my hands and knees and let out a groan as I arch my back up into a stretch, the colors and pattern of my bedspread still a bit hazy since my eyes are still trying to adjust to the light that is flooding into my room. I flop back down onto my stomach and stretch out my arms and legs before rolling over and slowly push myself off my bed. I quickly pull my hair up into a ponytail and pull the top blanket off my bed, wrapping it around myself before walking out into the Heads common room and taking a seat on the couch next to Brittany. I lean my head over, resting it on her shoulder, and sigh as I remember the events from last night.

She mirrors my sigh before asking, "When are you going to tell Mr. Potter?"

I shrug my shoulders and say, "In the end, I'm the only one who's going to be able to beat him, so I don't really see a point in telling Mr. Potter."

"You're not going to tell my dad about Andromeda?"

I shake my head as I respond. "No James, I'm not going to tell your dad about Andromeda. It's not like he can do anything to help…"

Suddenly Brittany jerks her shoulder out from under my head and grabs my face so that I'm looking at her through wide eyes. "Ari, do you remember when we overheard our moms talking?"

I relax a bit and roll my eyes with a smirk. "You're going to have to be more specific… We eavesdropped a _lot_…"

She gives me a stern look before saying, "That time we thought your mom replaced your dad, idiot."

I nod warily, unsure of where she's going with this. "Yes, I remember that… She kept calling him Jacob… What about it?"

Brittany grunts in frustration as she releases my face and throws her hands up in the air. "What do you _mean_ 'What about it?' You don't find it odd?"

I slowly shake my head, watching her reaction carefully. "Honestly, I haven't thought about it since that day…"

James walks over and stands behind the couch with his arms crossed tersely against his chest. "What are you two talking about?"

I shake my face free from Brittany's grip as she clears her throat and explains. "One day, when Ari and I were about four, we were trying to sneak into the kitchen and take a cookie before dinner. However, our mothers were talking in the kitchen, which made for quite the obstacle. We refused to give up though; we _really_ wanted a cookie. Anyways, Ari's mom said something that day that really strikes me as odd now that I think about it…"

James shrugs impatiently. "What'd her mom say?"

I think back to what we overheard my mom talking about and sigh. "Ariana's dad, Jacob, tried to come get her again yesterday."

James shakes his head in confusion. "I don't understand…"

Brittany sighs before responding. "Neither did we, but it meant something to our mothers because they both freaked out when it was said."

I raise an eyebrow at Brittany as I ask, "Why exactly did you bring this up?"

"Well," She clears her throat and continues, "Maybe your _dad_ wasn't actually _your_ dad…"

I scoff in disbelief, rolling my eyes as well. "So you think Jonathan Brighton isn't my dad?"

She shrugs, eyeing me carefully. "Honestly, I think it's a possibility. I mean, with everything that's come to light recently, does it really seem that far-fetched?"

I groan, shaking my head as Freddie walks into the common room. "No, not that far-fetched at all… But that leaves the question of who my real dad is…"

Brittany shakes her head, deep in thought, while absentmindedly saying, "I don't know… I mean, you look similar to Jonathan Brighton, so you really _could_ be his daughter… I'm really not sure…"

Freddie lets out a loud yawn and stretches. "How about we talk about this over breakfast?"

James and I both nod and murmur in agreement as we exit the Head's common room and walk toward the Great Hall in a tired silence.

Once we are almost to the Great Hall, Freddie stops us and motions for us to listen. After a few moments of searching silence, I hear what he heard.

"I don't _want_ to join you lot! Now leave me al-" A small girl's voice ring out in annoyance.

"You don't have a choice! You've been recruited!" The second voice, a male, says with an audible frown.

"Piss off… I'm not joining you lot and that's final!" The girl says.

The second voice laughs softly before responding. "Then face the consequences…"

Without warning, James pulls out his wand and walks around the corner. "Leave her alone."

I look over at Freddie, who is hurriedly pulling out his wand, and follow suit. We both rush around the corner and point our wands ahead, aiming them at the harasser, Roald Zabini.

Roald looks at James and scowls, then turns his gaze to me and Freddie. "This doesn't concern any of you, so run along."

Freddie and I scoff at the same time, smirking at each other after doing so in unison, then Freddie says, "Fat chance, Zabini. Seriously, sod off."

Roald laughs cynically, pointing his wand menacingly at the girl. "Or what? You'll stop me?

I nod, my eyes narrowed at Roald. "Yes, we will."

He laughs again while saying, "I'd like to see you try, little girl!"

I smirk at him, clearly amused by his underestimation of me and my friends. "I'm sure you would…"

James shakes his head, stealing a glance at the Hufflepuff girl Roald has cornered. "Are you alright?"

The girl glares at Roald with contempt. "I'd be better if this _tosser_ would leave me alone and just let me go to breakfast…"

James nods his understanding then turns his attention, and wand, back to Roald. "I'll tell you one last time, Zabini. Leave this girl alone or else…"

Roald laughs again shaking his head. He moves his wand slightly and opens his mouth to respond but, before he can even form any words, James, Freddie and I all wave our wands and hit Roald with different spells; all of our spells hitting him at the same time. My spell, meant to disarm him, hit him and sends his wand flying out of his hand and skittering down the adjacent corridor. Freddie's spell hits him, causing his legs to wobble out from under him and sending him crashing to the floor. James' spell hits him and causes his teeth to grow at an alarming rate.

Roald clasps a hand over his still growing teeth, pressing on the bottoms of them in an attempt to push them back into his head, while he tries to get up and run away, his attempt to escape in vain since Freddie's jelly-leg spell worked like a charm.

I look away from Roald with a smirk, turning my glance to the Hufflepuff and smiling politely at her shocked expression, her gaze still on the wobbly Roald Zabini. "Well, enjoy your morning. We'll be seeing you."

With that, the three of us go back around the corner and begin our journey toward the Great Hall. The Hufflepuff girl jogs after us, yelling out, "THANK YOU!"

Freddie holds up a fist in the air, a playful grin on his face as we enter the Great Hall. We take our seats at the Gryffindor table and begin scooping food onto our plates in silence, the events of what just happened still weighing on our minds. After a few minutes of eating in silence, I clear my throat and lean forward so I'm closer to my two friends and quietly say, "It seems my dad's recruitment is a bit more aggressive than we anticipated…"

Freddie nods, swallowing his mouthful of eggs before responding. "We'll need to be on the lookout for any more of their attempts to sway people's loyalty…"

James and I nod in agreement before James adds, "We really _should_ tell my dad about this…"

I shake my head ardently. "No. Not until we know more about it."

James groans in frustration, dropping his fork and rubbing his face. "Ari, if we wait any longer, things could get worse. More people could join, the recruitment could get more aggressive, it could start more trouble around the school… The list goes on and on! I don't see a single downside to telling my dad."

I roll my eyes and scoff, shaking my head once again. "I've got a few. If we call your dad, and he comes to get Andromeda, it could cause my dad to attack the muggles sooner. Or it could cause the students that did join to get upset and start a battle of their own _here_. Or my dad could bring the attack here first to stop any students who aren't loyal to him from opposing him. My list goes on and on as well, James. You're not going to change my mind on this. I'm not going to tell your dad until I feel the time is right."

James shakes his head in disappointment, muttering something about "stubborn and naïve", but I ignore him, instead watching Alec Darkbloom enter the Great Hall, the apprehension he feels apparent on his face.

I look back at Freddie and James and quietly say as I get up from the table, "Well, this discussion was fun, but I have other concerns to deal with. Until next time, boys…"

Freddie looks up in confusion, stammering as he tries to figure out what's going on. "What… where…" When he realizes where I'm headed, he immediately jumps up from the table and hops over the table, standing in front of me to block my way. "Ari, this is a _really_ bad idea… You're going to give away the fact that we were spying! Just let it go!"

I shake my head and push past him as I say, "I can't just _let it go_, Fred. I _trusted_ him…"

He grabs my arm and pleads with me. "_PLEASE_ don't do this…"

I let out a sigh and clench my teeth, tugging my arm from his gentle grip. "Sorry, Freddie…"

I walk through the Great Hall, my focus unwavering as I wordlessly approach Alec. He looks up at me and smiles nervously. "Good morning, Ari. Long time since we've talked, huh?"

I nod tersely before sternly saying, "We need to talk…"

He nods and gets up from the table, walking out of the Great Hall behind me, and following me into an empty classroom.

He crosses his arms anxiously and asks, "What would you like to talk about?"

"I think you _know_ what I want to talk about…"

Instantly his nervous demeanour disappears and he stares at me challengingly. "Alright Brighton, let's go talk…"

**Hey y'all! So, unfortunately, I haven't recieved many reviews recently, leading me to believe that nobody is reading this story anymore, so I'm not sure how much longer I'm going to continue this story... :/ I'm not the kind of writer who is going to ask for reviews in trade for another chapter, I would rather y'all review because you enjoy the story, and since I haven't gotten any as of late, I believe that people aren't enjoying the story anymore.**

**I will say what I normally do and tell y'all that I would really appreciate reviews for this chapter, telling me what you liked and disliked and if y'all have any ideas as to what's going to happen next!**

**Love y'all lovely readers lots! I hope y'all have a great Thanksgiving! :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx**


	40. Chapter 40

**Chapter 40**

**Ari's POV**

I glare at Alec with my arms crossed tersely. "Why'd you do it?"

Alec flashes a small, amused smile at me and shrugs his shoulders. "I don't know what you're talking about…"

I clench my fists together tightly and shout, "DON'T PLAY STUPID! YOU KNOW _EXACTLY_ WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT! WHY'D YOU JOIN THEM?"

He holds up his hands in defense, the amused smile still on his face. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Clearly somebody needs more sleep…"

I narrow my eyes at him again and say through gritted teeth, "I'm not joking around, Darkbloom… Why. Did. You. Join. Them?"

His smile drops and his shoulders sag, his brows furrowing together in frustration, as he tucks his hands in his pockets and answers. "Ari, this feud between you and your father is going to come down to a fight and it's time to pick a side… And based on what I've seen, your father's side is the winning side. I'm just making sure that I'll make it through this war, which I _never_ asked to be a part of, alive and in one piece… I can't always be a nice guy, Ari! I have to look out for myself too!"

I stare at Alec through wide eyes, my mouth slightly agape in shock and my head slowly shaking side to side as what he's said sinks in. After standing in stunned silence for a few minutes, Alec clears his throat in discomfort, breaking me from my stupor. "You… You joined _them_ to save your own bloody skin? You would choose to look out for _yourself_ rather than spare the lives of _thousands_ of _muggles_?"

Alec shakes his head, grunting in frustration. "I won't be taking any of those muggles lives though!"

I scoff loudly, shaking my head at him. "Clearly you're as dense as everyone believes… Of course you're going to have to kill those muggles! What do you think my father is recruiting for in the first place?! _He's creating an army_! Which means _you're_ just as involved in this impending war as _I_ am!"

I push past him and open the door to the room, stopping when he yells, "What makes you any different from your father?! You're both so eager for a fight that you're willing to put innocent lives on the line! From what I can see, I simply picked the more absolute choice!"

I turn to face him and say, "The _difference_ between my father and me is that, for him, all lives are expendable and easily replaced. For me, _every_ life is precious. You picked the wrong side, Darkbloom…"

He raises a questioning eyebrow at me and asks, "Why do you say that, Brighton?"

"Because I _refuse_ to lose this war." With that I exit the room, shutting the door behind me, and almost run into James and Freddie.

They both jump back in surprise, guilt written on both their faces. I stifle a startled scream that threatens to come out of me before asking, "What the hell are you two _doing_?"

Freddie shrugs, his surprise and guilt turned to humor as he smirks at me. "We just wanted to know what you two were talking about…"

Before I can answer him, the door to the room opens and Alec angrily says, "Be warned, Brighton, I will _not_ hesitate to kill you…"

I turn back to him and smirk, taking in the angered look on his face. "The feeling is mutual, Darkbloom."

I turn back around to face James and Freddie as Alec angrily marches past us. "Does _that_ answer your question?"

Freddie glances as Alec's retreating figure and sighs. "So he's really joined them?"

I nod, a disgusted look on my face. "He wanted to be on the '_winning_' side… He thinks we're going to lose when we end up having to deal with my father!"

James looks at me warily, as if trying to figure out how to approach a delicate subject. "Well, the prophecy _did_ say only two of us are going to get out of there alive…"

I look at Freddie, who is glaring daggers at James, and try to ignore the nagging fear that is coming to the forefront of my mind while changing the subject. "So what are we planning on doing today, Freddie?"

He responds with a large grin. "We should take our American friends out for a-"

A sudden commotion in the Great Hall cuts off the rest of Freddie's suggestion. The three of us share an almost excited glace before rushing into the Great Hall to see what's going on. Once inside the expansive hall, I grab the boys shoulders in glee at the scene unfolding in front of us.

There, standing in the middle of the Great Hall, in all her glory, is McGonagall. She has a student guarded behind her, who seems to be nursing a wounded cheek, as she towers over Andromeda, who simply glares as McGonagall loudly chastises her. "How _DARE_ you hit a student! When is that _ever_ acceptable?!"

Andromeda looks unfazed, almost bored, as she responds. " 'e waz spreading lies about-"

McGonagall shakes her head, the bun atop her head moving as she does. "That is not an acceptable reason to hit a student! Pack your office up and leave my school at once!"

Andromeda smirks at McGonagall and says, "Your zkool?"

"Yes! _MY_ school! Now, get out of _my_ school this instant!"

Andromeda looks up to the replacement Headmaster Seamus Finnegan, who looks rather displeased with this situation and leaves only after he subtly nods to her. As she proudly marches out of the Great Hall, you can hear the murmurs of both confusion and excitement pas from student to student until the noise fills the room.

The moment the door shuts behind Andromeda, the Great Hall erupts into a fit of cheers so loud it's almost deafening. McGonagall holds one of her hands up while she uses the other to point her wand at her throat before her voice echoes throughout the room. "STUDENTS! I APOLOGIZE FOR BEING AWAY SO LONG, HOWEVER, I AM BACK AS ACTING HEADMASTER AGAIN AND I WILL BE MAKING A GREAT DEAL OF CHANGES AROUND THIS PLACE VERY SOON." With that, McGonagall removes the wand from her throat and turns to the student that she was earlier protecting and begins talking to him.

I watch Seamus shake his head at McGonagall disapprovingly before getting up from the Professor's table and exiting the room. I make a mental note to figure out what that was about when I get the chance, then grab the arm of both Freddie and James and drag them over to McGonagall, grinning as we approach her. "Welcome back, Headmaster. How's RC?"

She nods to us with a small smile while still tending to Andromeda's assault victim. "Good to be back. RC is good, he's getting back into the swing of things and helping Mister Potter track down your father. Would you three mind bringing Rodney here to the Hospital Wing? I have a few things I need to sort out as soon as possible."

I look down at Rodney and grin, recognizing him immediately. "Rodney, why does always seem to be _you_ on the receiving end of someone's abuse?"

He shrugs his shoulders and flashes a small smile at me. "I guess I'm just lucky…"

I let out a laugh as Freddie, James and I guide Rodney out into the corridor. Once we're all outside, I quietly ask, "Why did she hit you, Rodney?"

Rodney looks over at me warily while responding. "Is it true you three stopped Zabini from hurting that Hufflepuff girl, Emiliana Brown?"

I nod slowly, wondering where he is going with this. My question, however, is answered when he continues. "Why? Why did you help her?"

I shrug my shoulders casually. "Because she needed help."

Freddie smirks as he chimes in. "Yeah, mate. We're not the cold, heartless, killers everyone believes we are!"

Rodney shakes his head absentmindedly. "No, I guess you're not…"

I wait in anticipatory silence for Rodney to answer my first question but, when I realize that's not going to happen, I lead the rest of the walk in silence. We're almost to the Hospital Wing when Rodney speaks again. "She tried to recruit me, you know…"

My head immediately snaps to the side and I stare at him through wide eyes. "_What_?! What did you say?!"

He smirks at me as he responds, his tone suggesting that the answer to my question is obvious. "Well I said no, of course! But I also told her that I was going to tell someone what she was doing, so she hit me… I'm lucky Headmaster McGonagall came in when she did or I'm sure I would have been hurt a lot worse…"

I pat him on the shoulder as we come to the doors of the Hospital Wing. "Well Rodney, I'm glad you're alright."

"Thanks." He nods once before walking into the Hospital Wing.

Once he's gone, I turn to James and say, "Go find Al. We have a _lot_ to fill him in on…"

James nods then jogs away. I then look to Freddie and sigh. "Let's go find McGonagall. She'll want to hear about Andromeda's recruitment attempts."

Freddie nods his understanding then gestures for me to lead the way. I walk ahead with a grin, glad that things are starting to get better. Andromeda is gone, McGonagall is back, I haven't heard from or seen my dad in a while and-

"Ariana…"

I stop abruptly and turn to look at Freddie with a questioning look on my face. "Did you just-"

He places a finger against his lips and motions for me to follow him, so I comply, allowing him to lead us to a small door. He presses his ear against the door and gestures for me to do the same and, once again, I comply. The moment my ear is flush against the door I hear:

"…You get caught. You knew I needed more and you've failed me yet again…"

"I'm zorry my Lord! Please! I can do better! I 'ave at least fifteen students recruited so far! Zey can continue to recruit in my absence!"

"That is your _only_ saving grace… I-"

Suddenly my body is violently slammed against the wall next to the door and an all too familiar voice sounds next to me. "What do we have here, Castor? Looks like the golden girl is eavesdropping _again_!"

Castor laughs cynically. "And, Arowena, she brought a _friend_! What shall we do with the _friend_?"

I grunt angrily as I struggle against Arowena's grasp and manage to say into the stone of the wall, "Leave him alone!"

Arowena pushes against me aggressively, shoving me into the stone wall harder, her hot breath blowing against my ear as she manically cackles and says, "Or what? You haven't got what it takes to beat me! You couldn't do it when I killed your little friend, and you can't do it now…"

I struggle against her grip again, an angry scream leaving my mouth in the process. Not a moment after I scream, the door Freddie and I had been listening through opens, revealing a very angry looking Andromeda and a smug looking Seamus Finnegan, who speaks first. "Well what do we have here?"

Arowena pulls my hands behind my back before yanking me off the wall and thrusting me toward Seamus. "Castor and I caught this one and her friend over there eavesdropping on your conversation with Clarimonde, my Lord. Shall we dispose of them?"

Seamus shakes his head and chuckles lightly. "No need, my children. You two have done wonderfully. Now go continue to recruit for me while I talk to my daughter. It's been quite a while, hasn't it, Ariana?"

I grasp Freddie's arm tightly as I clench my teeth and say to Seamus, "You really are fond of that Polyjuice Potion, aren't you? Where is the _real_ Professor Finnegan?"

**I feel like a _lot_ happened in this chapter, but it's all pertinant to the story! I promise!**

**As always, I would love to hear your thoughts about the chapter and the story! Oh, and I'm pretty sure I know how I want this story to end, but I have another ending that I kind of want to do... So I need your advice! Should I only post one ending or should I post one and then post the alternate ending? It's up to yall, but I really do need your help because if I can't figure it out it's going to take me forever to finish this story...**

**Thanks for everything, yall! :)**

**-Tx**


	41. Chapter 41

**Chapter 41**

**Ari's POV**

I continue to stare at my dad, who is parading around as Professor-turned-replacement-Headmaster Seamus Finnegan, through narrowed eyes, only easing up when Freddie grabs my arm and squeezes lightly. I manage to glance over at him and see that he's seems a bit uneasy, almost nervous, before looking back at my dad. "How long have you been here, dad?"

My dad places a hand on his chest and gives me an almost endearing look that I know he's faking. "How long has it been since you called me dad?"

I roll my eyes and scoff angrily. "Not long enough. Seriously, what are you doing here? How long have you been here?"

Finally, Freddie finds his voice, a hint of panic in it as he speaks. "Are you lot attacking the school? Is that why you're here?"

My dad looks at Freddie and disregards him immediately, looking back at me curiously. "What rumors have you been spreading about me, dear girl?"

I clench my teeth and fists in an attempt to calm down, then indignantly respond. "No rumors, only truth. Now… WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?"

He smirks at me while glancing behind me and saying to nobody in particular, "Looks like you did a little recruiting of your own! Shame, really, that Landen is still alive. He had been quite a thorn in my side…"

I pull out my wand and aggressively point it at his face. "ANSWER THE BLOODY QUESTION!"

He looks at me and his smirk turns into a small sneer before morphing into pretend shock and offense as I hear the sound of someone rapidly approaching behind me. "MISS BRIGHTON! LOWER YOUR WAND IMMEDIATELY!"

I hesitantly look back and see Professor McGonagall sprinting toward Freddie, my dad and me, with Al, Landen and James tailing behind her. Her face is full of panic and her wand is outstretched toward me and my dad, the grey bun on top of her head bobbing up and down as she runs through the corridor, approaching u rapid speed. Once she reaches us, she shoves my wand down, shooting me a look of disappointment before turning to "Seamus" and placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Seamus, are you alright?"

He places a hand over his heart and takes a deep, calming breath. "I am now, Minerva. If you hadn't gotten here when you did, I have no idea what would have happened…"

McGonagall turns to look at me again, anger painting her every feature, and asks, "Miss Brighton! What has gotten _into_ you that would make you think threatening a teacher would _ever_ be okay?"

I shake my head, completely in shock, and look over at Freddie, who's expression matches my own, before managing to stammer out, "He… He's-"

"Seamus" cuts me off before I can manage anything else. "She was _rambling_ on about how she thinks I'm her _father_! She's delusional, Minerva! Completely mental!"

I clench my fists and stomp my foot loudly. "HE'S-"

McGonagall turns around again, this time holding up her hand to silence me. "Miss Brighton, enough! You've done enough! Miss Brighton! ARIANA! DO NOT WALK AWAY WHEN I A-"

I place my wand back into my pocket and turn back to McGonagall and glare at her, stopping her mid-sentence before I clench my teeth together tightly and squeeze my hands into tense fists as I stomp away angrily. I can hear "Seamus" thanking McGonagall again for showing up when she did, and hear him talk about what an annoyance I was while she was gone, and how he feared for his life. I scoff loudly, rolling my eyes as I march through the corridor and go outside, heading straight for the Forbidden Forest.

Despite the name, I'd been in that forest so many times since I'd gotten to Hogwarts that it didn't seem very "forbidden" anymore. It was more like the "Casually Visited Forest" than anything else.

On my way to the forest, I ran into Monroe, who managed to get out, "Hey sl-" before I pulled out my wand and waved it at her, causing her (and a few unsuspecting students nearby) to drop to the ground, their entire bodies stiff like boards.

I continue to march on, jumping when someone grabs my shoulder and spins me around. "WHAT?!"

Brittany holds up a finger at me and raises her eyebrow sternly, while Landen stands behind her and barely manages to contain his laughter. "Okay, I'm going to have to ask you to lose the attitude. I don't want to help you if you're going to be snippy."

I clench my teeth and stare at her plainly, being sure to remain quiet, which she takes as a cue to continue. "Second, what the hell just happened? What did we I miss?"

I take a calming breath and tuck my wand behind my ear before responding. "He's here, Bri. He's been here the entire time and I didn't even see it…"

She looks at me in disbelief, her mouth hanging open in shock. When she doesn't respond, Landen takes it upon himself to ask the question that's been bothering me most. "How long?"

I shrug my shoulders, letting out a frustrated sigh in the process. "I'm… I don't know, Lan… I'm guessing it was after I got back from my trip to America, but before Andromeda took those recruits into the forest…"

Landen takes a moment to contemplate what I've said, then releases a loud sigh. "We have to get out of here…"

Brittany and I both shake our heads at the same time, however, I'm the one who speaks. "We can't leave the students here. We can't leave them here all alone with him…"

Landen scoffs before angrily asking, "Then what do you suppose we do?!"

I throw my hands up in exasperation and groan. "I DON'T KNOW! I just… I don't know…" I look over at Brittany and shakily sigh. "Bri, what do we do?"

She opens her mouth to respond, but the voice that I hear comes from past her. "We bring the fight to him, of course."

I stare at Freddie as he joins our strange circle. "Easier said than done, Fred."

He shakes his head while wrapping an arm around Brittany's waist. "Not exactly. He seems like a prideful man. We just have to find a way to use that to our advantage."

I sigh again and shake my head adamantly. "As I said, easier said than done."

"No, it's really not."

I roll my eyes as James, Al and Eli all join our group. "What did you have in mind, James?"

He looks around at everyone, as if the answer to my question is obvious. "We just have to challenge him in front of his recruits…"

Finally Brittany decides to chime in. "But we don't know where they meet! How would we even be able to do that?"

Al grins deviously as he speaks. "We'll have to follow one of them…"

Brittany frowns, crossing her arms tersely. "But who?"

I tap my chin thoughtfully then grin. "We'll all pick one to follow and we'll tail them for the rest of the week, making note of everywhere they go."

Eli smirks while speaking. "That could work…"

Brittany, once again playing devil's advocate, speaks up. "But what if we get caught? What then?"

Freddie tightens his grip around Brittany's waist and looks around the group, making eye contact with each of us. "We _won't_ get caught. We have too much riding on this. Too much at stake…"

Eli clears his throat and asks, "But who's going to follow who?"

I shake my head and say, "I don't care who you lot follow, but _I'm _going to follow Darkbloom."

**Alright y'all! I have good news and bad news. The good news is that I figured out how I want this story to end. Yay! The bad news, is that the end is drawing near. Only about two or three more chapters left until its over. :(**

**As always, I would _LOVE_ to hear your thoughts and opinions about this chapter! Also, how do you feel about how close the ending is? Are you nervous about how I plan to have it end? You should be! ;P**

**I appreciate all you lovrly readers and followers sooo much! Honestly, I dont think y'all will ever know how much I appreciate you all. I love all of you tons! :)**

**Thanks,**

**-Tx :)**


	42. Chapter 42

**Chapter 42**

**Ari's POV**

I crouch behind a pillar and watch Alec Darkbloom silently stalk through the corridor ahead. It's been two days since we as a group collectively decided that we would each follow a member of my dad's recruited army.

Freddie is following the Ravenclaw Jenny Singleton, who I don't think minds it too much, since she's fancied Freddie for as long as I can remember. Al is following Roald Zabini, since they are both in the same house, while James is following the Hufflepuff Lilly Fitzpatrick. Eli is following Arowena, just in case she gets sloppy and leads us to their meeting place, while Brittany and Landen tailing the Slytherine Lowell Eltron. Freddie was completely opposed to letting Brittany follow _anyone_ but, after lots of arguing and insisting on her part, he finally agreed. As long as Landed went with her.

Alec opens a large wooden door, one that I remember leading into an abandoned classroom, and enters the room, being sure to close the door quietly behind him. I wait a few seconds, then quickly stand upright and tip toe toward the door, lightly placing my ear against the worn wood and listening intently. Behind it, I can hear muffles voices and an almost inaudible conversation.

"…doesn't tell me how you know this information, Darkbloom."

"I just do. I've known her for almost two years now, and I've known him for much longer. They're planning something, I just know it."

"I'm not going to pass along a _hunch_ to Lord Brighton. Either find us some facts or keep your fat mouth shut. Lord Brighton doesn't trust you so any suspicions you have need to backed up by fact."

Alec remains quiet for a moment, and I'm almost afraid that the conversation is over, until he speaks again. "Zabini, you know better than anyone that Ariana is trouble for whatever plans Lord Brighton has. What if I were to kill her and bring her to Lord Brighton as a gift? Would he trust me then?"

_Zabini?_ _Then where is Al?_ I look around for him but return my ear to the door when I hear Zabini yell.

"NO!" I hear Zabini sigh and take a moment to calm down before he responds again, his voice tense with underlying rage. "No, Ariana is for Lord Brighton to deal with. He made his instructions very clear to _all_ of us. She is not to die at the hands of _anyone_ but him."

I barely stifle the urge to laugh aloud at the thought of that. My smile disappears when Alec speaks again. "Fine. I _will_ bring this up again at the meeting tonight. I hope you know that…"

My elation with this news shows on face. It's short lived, however, when I hear two sets of footsteps rapidly approaching the door. I propel myself off the door and sprint back to where I had been hiding before, praying that they don't walk my way.

I hear the door open and hold my breath as Zabini says, "The meeting is at nine, which gives you an hour to change your mind. I hope, for your sake, that you do. I _will_ kill you if Lord Brighton demands it."

I can hear the smirk on Alec's face as he says, "I would expect nothing less. See you back here in a few hours, friend."

I firmly press myself against the pillar I'm hiding behind when I hear footsteps coming closer to me. The moment I think the person is about to see me, he turns and walks down the opposite corridor. I peek around the pillar and see Alec walking in the opposite direction of me, his back slowly disappearing from sight.

I wait until the sound of footsteps has faded completely before releasing my death grip on the edges of the pillar and slowly heading back to the Head's common room to inform everyone of what I'd just learned.

The moment I enter the room, I'm greeted by the sound of Brittany, Landen and Freddie arguing.

"I TOLD YOU TO STAY WITH HER, LANDEN!" Freddie yells as he points and accusing finger at Landen.

Landen clenches his fists and yells, "SHE DOESN'T NEED ME TO BABYSIT HER! SHE'S-"

Brittany grunts angrily while attempting to position herself between Landen and Freddie. "I DON'T NEED PROTECTING, FREDDIE! I'M NOT A CHILD!"

Freddie turns his attention to Brittany and groans loudly. "SOMETHING COULD HAVE HAPPENED, BRI!"

Brittany punches Freddie in the chest and glares at him as she says, "Don't you _dare_ yell at me. Why is it Ari gets to go out on her own all the time but I get in trouble for going out on my own _once_?"

Freddie takes a deep breath while pinching the bridge of his nose. "Because Ariana's single so nobody cares about her."

I gasp loudly and yell, "HEY!" but Freddie ignores me and continues.

"Bri, I don't want _anything_ to happen to you, especially if I could have prevented it. _Please_ don't be mad at me for that. Don't be mad at me for loving you."

I make a dramatic gagging sound before loudly saying, "You two make me want to vomit…"

Landen smirks at me as I walk over to the three of them. "Did you find anything out?"

I hold up my finger to silence him while I turn to Freddie and punch him in the chest. "I'm _single_ so _nobody_ _cares_ _about_ _me_? You're an ass…"

Freddie rubs the spot on his chest and smirks. "Sorry…"

I roll my eyes and turn back to Landen, lowering my finger and saying, "I found out where the meeting will be held and at what time. I'll fill you all in when everyone is here to hear it."

Landen nods then adds, "We're only waiting on Al and Eli now."

I raise an eyebrow at him and ask, "What about James?"

Freddie points toward James' room and sighs. "Locked himself in there after following his mark. Not sure what's wrong with him."

"And _none_ of you thought to check on him?" I ask in disbelief.

Brittany shrugs her shoulders as she grabs Freddie's hand and intertwines her fingers with his. "He's a big boy. He'll be alright."

I roll my eyes at them as Al and Eli walk in, loudly greeting us as they do. I cup my hands around my mouth and yell, "JAMES! I'VE GOT SOME INFORMATION! GET OUT HERE!"

We wait for a few seconds but James doesn't come out. I get up, gesturing to the group that I'll be back in a moment, then knock once on James' door before entering his room, shutting the door loudly behind me.

James is sitting on his bed with his legs crossed, his back to the door, and staring intently out the small, diamond patterned window on the wall across from him. Small raindrops soundlessly hit the window, running down the pane tracing erratic patters before falling off completely.

I clear my throat loudly in an attempt to get his attention, but he doesn't budge, so I pick up a blanket that is crumpled on the ground near me and throw it at him. The blanket hits the back of his head and explodes around him, completely covering his head in fabric. "JAMES!"

He pulls the blanket off his head and sets it on his bed as he turns to face me. "Yes?"

"Did you not hear me yelling for you? I found out when and where the meeting is."

James nods as he hops off his bed and motions toward the door. "Oh, lead the way."

He walks toward the door but I stand in his path. "Are you alright?"

He nods, a halfhearted smile on his face. "Me? Oh, yeah. Just a bit in shock that everything is happening so fast now. It was dragged out in the beginning, but by now, it all seems to be packed together. One attack after another…"

I place a hand on his arm and sigh. "It's going to be fine, James. The meeting is tonight, which means we'll attack tonight, if that's what everyone agrees on. It's almost over…"

James smirks at me. "That doesn't make me feel any better, you know…"

I raise an eyebrow curiously at him as my hand falls back to my side. "What do you m-"

He shakes his head, signaling the end of our conversation, and gestures toward the door again. "I do believe we've made them wait long enough. Don't you think it's time you informed the others of your discovery?"

I nod, still worried, and exit the room. Once out into the common room, I find Landen, Eli, Al, Freddie and Brittany are all sitting on the couches waiting for us. I wait for James to join them then begin. "Tonight, as I was tailing Darkbloom, I followed him to an old classroom, where he met with Zabini. I found out that the meeting is in the abandoned classroom at nine tonight."

I wait a moment and let the information sink in then, when I feel they've had an adequate time to absorb it, I continue. "Do we want to attack tonight or not?"

"What do you think?"

I look over at Brittany and sigh. "It doesn't matter what I think. I'm dragging you lot into this mess, and I don't want to do so if you lot aren't ready for it."

Brittany shakes her head and rephrases her question. "What is your opinion? Do you think we should attack now or not?"

I take a deep breath and purse my lips before answering. "I think the longer we wait, the harder it's going to be to actually win this. By waiting longer, we're giving him more time to get more recruits."

Freddie looks around then says, "Then I guess it's settled. We'll attack tonight."

I shake my head rapidly. "No… If you lot aren't ready-"

Brittany shakes her head as well as she says, "_We_ don't have to be ready. _You_ do."

I nod my head once then look at each of the faces in front of me. I can feel tears stinging at my eyes as I realize this could be the last time I see all of them. "Er, in case things go south tonight, I, er… I just…" I wipe the warm tears of my face and chuckle. "Merlin, I really _am_ ruddy at good-byes…"

I look at them all again and see that they are watching me intently. "I just really want to let you know that I love you all very much and, if things go wrong tonight, I appreciate everything you lot have done to help me with this. I can honestly say that I couldn't have done _any_ of this without you. _Any_ of you."

Freddie smiles at me as he says, "While your tear-filled thank you was amusing, it wasn't necessary. Just uncomfortable for everyone involved." Brittany smacks him in the chest so he adds with an even bigger smile, "We'll see you after everything's finished. Promise."

I manage a sniffle as I let out a laugh and wipe away my tears. "Alright, enough with of this. We'd better get ready. We're leaving in forty-five minutes."

Everyone nods in unison before getting up of the couch and adjourning to one room or another. Brittany and Freddie and the only ones left in the common room and, though Freddie told me he was sure we would be fine, I'm sure they're about to say their good-bye's, just in case. So I silently walk into my room, giving them the space they need, and sit on my bed.

I pull my knees up to my chest and wrap my arms around them, continuously taking deep, calming breaths in an attempt to prepare for what's ahead. In just forty-five minutes, I will challenge my father in an attempt to bait him into a fight that I may or may not win.

_Merlin, I HAVE to win. For James and Al, Eli and Brittany, Landen and Freddie. I cannot lose. I have to protect them… I have to fight for everyone whose already died to get me this far._

_I will not lose._

I take a final deep breath and open my eyes, which I hadn't realized I'd closed, and jump as a startled squeak escapes my lips. The person across from me smirks at my reaction. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

I return his smirk as I say, "Now why don't I believe that?"

He shakes his head with a laugh. "Because you're smarter than that."

I roll my eyes while I ask, "What are you doing here, Jamie? Shouldn't you be preparing for what's to come? You know, made sure you've said your farewells to everyone in case things go sour?"

James' smirk turns to a grin as he responds. "That's actually what I'm here to do."

I roll my eyes again as I cross my legs, my hands resting politely in my lap. "I'm sure you have more important people than me to say good-bye to. You're a very popular person. Lots of people love you."

He nods, his signature smirk returned as he takes a seat next to me on the bed. "Yes, but only one of those people matters."

I shake my head adamantly, looking him in the eyes as I speak. "No. You should be saying your farewells to your family; to Al and Fred, not to me. I'm no one, _NO ONE_, compared to them. In fact, I don't even _compare_ to them."

James smiles again, a faint smile, as he gently grabs my face in his hands and presses his lips to mine. The kiss is light and only last a few seconds before he pulls away, releasing my face and resting his forehead on mine, and says, "You don't _have_ to compare to them. If I loved them the way I loved you, we would be having a completely different-"

Before he can finish his sentence, I bring my arms up and grab his face, fervently pressing my lips to his. James is a bit taken aback at first but, after his initial shock recedes, I can feel him smirk against my mouth as he wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me as close to his body as possible.

Fresh tears run down my face as I realize this could be the last time I get to do this. This could be the last time I even get to see James, and that thought alone is enough to make me not want to face my father.

James pulls away when he feels my tears and pulls me into a hug instead, rubbing comforting circles on my back. "You need to beat your dad. Beat him so that, when this is all over, we can be together again."

I nod while wiping my tears away, embarrassed that I let myself cry in front of James. "That sounds… perfect. I'd love that…"

He grins jovially as he plants a kiss on my forehead and grabs one of my hands, intertwining his fingers with mine. Suddenly, behind us we hear a throat clear and someone say, "Time to go."

I give James another kiss before wiping away my remaining tears and, with a renewed sense of vigor, I hop off the bed, being sure not to release James' hand at all in the process. "Time to end this."

**I'm working hard on the last few chapters, so I'll get those posted as soon as possible.**

**As always, I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions about this chapter, and about this story in general!**

**Thanks,**

**-Tx :)**


	43. Chapter 43

**Chapter 43**

**Ari's POV**

We all silently sneak through the halls in a single file line, with me leading the way. Once we get to the pillar that I had been hiding behind, I hold up my hand and gesture for them to stop. I peek around the pillar and, when I've determined the coast is clear, I turn back to James, who is the person behind me, and whisper, "What time is it?"

James looks at the watch on his wrist as he answers. "It's 9:05. You ready to do this?"

I glance back at the door and nod. "As ready as I'll ever be." I turn back to the others and whisper, "Are you lot ready?"

Everyone behind me nods, visibly gripping their wands more tightly. I watch Freddie grab hold of Brittany's hand and, when I realize that, if I fail tonight, this could be my last opportunity to do so, I grab hold of James hand and squeeze gently. James squeezes my hand in return as he asks, "Do you know what you're going to say once we get in there?"

I smirk and shake my head. "I was thinking I would just wing it… You know how well I do with spontaneity…"

He cracks a small smile and nods as he quietly says, "Better get in there then."

I nod my agreement then give his hand one last squeeze and say a quiet "love you" before releasing his hand and motioning for everyone to follow me. We approach the door and I once again hold up my hand for them to wait while I lightly press my ear to the door. Behind it, I can hear a multitude of voices, all muffled by the door. I turn around to face the others and nod with a smile before taking a deep breath and opening the door.

As the door opens, the voices become clearer, until they see me, which is when they stop completely. I take a look around at all the faces, being sure to give each of them the same contemptuous look as I do, my bravery fading when I see that they all have their wands pointed at me with sneers on their faces.

Suddenly my father's voice echoes throughout the room. "Did you think I didn't _know_ you were following my recruits?" I hear him chuckle a bit manically as he continues. "And now you've fallen right into my trap!"

Without my gaze leaving my father, who no longer looks like Seamus and now looks like my father once again, I twist my head to the side a bit and say over my shoulder, "We're severely outnumbered… You lot need to get out while you still can. Go…"

I hear Freddie scoff as he murmurs, "Fat chance, Brighton…"

My father laughs again while shaking his head. "Your friends in the hall aren't going anywhere. Arowena? Castor? Lead them in please."

I can feel my eyes widen as two of my least favorite people in the world force my friends into the room with us. I shake my head and defiantly say, "Leave them out of this!"

My father grins evilly at me as he asks, "And what do you propose we do instead?"

I take a deep breath in an attempt to keep my cool before I say, "You and I… we'll, er… You and I can duel. One on one."

My father cups a hand around his ear as he sneers at me. "Was _that_ the challenge?! It didn't sound like much of a challenge… I know I raised you to be tougher than that!"

The entire room of recruits emits a low laugh as my fists clench at his final comment and my vision goes red. "Fine! I challenge you to a duel! One final fight, just the two of us!"

My father's sneers expands, almost taking up his entire face, as he pulls out his wand and says, "Now that's more like it! There's my little fireball! Unfortunately, we can't just _let_ your friends go… Hmmm… What to do with them… Oh! I know!" He looks at Arowena and Castor with a malicious grin. "Castor. Arowena. Kill them all."

Out of the corner of my eye, I can see Arowena waving her wand but, before I can react, I hear Eli yell, "Bri, DUCK!"

The next few things happened so fast that I almost had trouble registering. All at the same time, Eli shoots a spell at Arowena, sending her flying back into the wall of the classroom, Landen shoots a spell at Castor, shooting him out into the corridor and crashing into the wall out there, my father runs from the room in a panic, and all of the recruits begin crazily firing spells at us.

The moment I've registered what has happened, I turn to Freddie and yell, while ducking under flying spells, "You okay in here?"

He nods while firing a spell at one of the students. "We're fine! Go after your dad!"

I nod my thanks then sprint out of the classroom, following the tail end of a cloak that I see disappear around the corner ahead of me. I grasp my wand tightly as I chase my father outside, shooting a spell at him when I see him heading for the Forbidden Forest.

Little droplets of rain fall on me, cooling my skin as I watch my father dodge my spell. I sprawl out onto the ground when he shoots a returning spell at me then abruptly hop up off the ground and begin chasing him again when he turns and flees toward the forest.

The drizzle turns to a steady, cold rain as I continue to chase my father, my shoes splashing through forming puddles as I go. As we enter the tree line, my father disappears from my sight. I look around frantically, the light of the full moon working as my lantern, hoping and praying that I'll catch even a small glimpse of him.

Suddenly, the wind is knocked from my lungs as I'm slammed back into a tree. I let out a groan and get up onto my hands and knees as I attempt to catch my breath again, however, before I can, I'm forcefully lifted upright, my head trapped in a headlock of a Death Eater while my dad stands across from me with his wand pointed at me threateningly. "Do you have any _idea_ how many times I've tried to have you killed?! After you escaped the explosion at your house that was supposed to kill you and that damned father of yours, I panicked. But now, after _so_ _many_ failed attempts, I finally have you here, and I can _finally_ kill you." I narrow my eyes at him as I watch his face contort into a sneer. "Are you ready to die, little fireball?"

"My father?"I ask as he presses the tip of his wand to my forehead.

He laughs icily as he acerbically says, "Yes, _father_. You didn't actually think _I _was your father, did you? Oh, I did _pretend _to be, for many years after I had your mother murdered, but I'm not your _real_ father. It was quite easy to pretend to be him, since we're twins and all…"

"You... My... Mom?"

"Oh yes. I had your mother murdered! As soon as she realized who I was and what I was planning, she tried, on multiple occasions, to get you back to your father, Jacob." He scowls at the last part before grinning again and adding, "And oh, the things I did to your real dad while I pretended to be him, magnificent! Absolutely brilliant! Things that would even make Voldemort cringe, were he still alive! And, once you're out of the way, I'll be free to attack the American Embassies unopposed."

"You..." I can't manage to form the question I so desperately want to ask, so I only ask him, "Why?"

My uncle grins as the tip of his wand leaves my forehead. "Because, if I use the Polyjuice Potion and impersonate someone from another country, I can blow it up and make it look like an act of terrorism. Now imagine that at ALL the American Embassies around the world! I could start World War Three!"

He must see my hazy look of confusion because he attempts to elaborate however, before he can say the first word, he and the Death Eater holding me prisoner, are blasted back away from me and sent deep into the forest, followed by a voice that says, "Maybe, for future reference, you should skip the speech and just _kill_ your victim!"

I push my sopping wet hair out of my face and pick up my wand off the ground, grinning at my friends. "Thanks, guys…"

He looks around warily as he asks, "You okay?"

I nod and say, "He's not really my father! He's... my uncle, I think? Merlin, I have an _uncle_! That doesn't matter. All that matters is that _he's_ not my_ father_!"

James gives me a look of confusion, but I ignore it, still stuck thinking about the fact that my dad isn't really my dad, then my thoughts turn back to my friends. _What are they doing here? What happened with the Death Eaters?_

Freddie smirks at me, noting my worried expression, as he says, "They were an easy bunch to beat. Now what are we waiting for? Don't we have a father to beat?!"

I shake my head with a grin as I remember the task at hand. "No, we have an _uncle_ to beat!"

Freddie raises an eyebrow in confusion, but I can only manage to gesture for him to follow me and say, as I run deeper into the forest, "I'll tell you about it after!"

I know we are getting close to wherever my uncle landed when, in an attempt to hinder us, a barrage of Death Eaters and spells come flying at us. Immediately my friends begin firing spells back while dodging the multiple spells being fired at them.

I watch Eli fire off a spell before saying, "We've got this! GO!"

I shake myself from my stupor and continue deeper into the forest, the icy rain now falling in a torrential downpour. As I run, I get an eerie sense of déjà vu, as if I've been in this part of the forest before. While this is completely possible, since I venture into the forest regularly, but this feeling of familiarity is different. Before I can put anymore thought into it, I run into a clearing.

I look around and take in where I am in an attempt to get a leg up. This clearing has long grass that has been weighed down by the weight of the rain, and a long, wooden post in the middle of the clearing. The moment I see the post, I can almost imagine Carter's lifeless body lying in the grass ahead.

_I'm in the clearing where everything started..._

I barely see my uncle come out from the opposite tree line before he's fired a spell at me. The spell barely misses me, but instead, hits the tree right next to me, causing it to explode and sending splinters and shrapnel flying everywhere. Bits of flying wood hit my arm and the side of my face, creating long cuts and scrapes, but I ignore the pain as I wave my wand and turn the raindrops into long icicles. I wave my wand once again and send the icicles sailing toward my uncle, grimacing when he turns them back into water.

I wave my wand again immediately, but so does my uncle. My spell sails out of the end of my wand and heads directly for my uncle, while his spell shoots directly toward me.

Our spells meet in the middle, colliding with each other, and create a resounding explosion that levels all the trees and sends both of us flying backward.

My back hits the ground hard, knocking the wind out of me once again, and leaves me feeling a bit dizzy. I struggle to roll over, gasping for air once I do, and rub my back, wincing and letting a small gasp of pain out when I hit a tender spot that I'm sure will be a nasty bruise tomorrow.

I slowly lift off of the muddy, puddle covered forest floor and use a fallen tree to help myself stand and wince again as I straighten my back out. I frantically look around for my wand, panicking a bit when I can't find it. I look ahead of me and let a small squeak escape my lips when I see my uncle is about to shoot a spell at me, two Death Eaters at his side.

Suddenly, the two Death Eaters are sucked into the ground, enveloped by what appeared to be a whirlpool of mud and grass. My uncle lowers his wand in alarm, wildly looking around for his unseen assailant. He presses his wand to the mark on his arm and two more Death Eaters appear next to him and the scared expression disappears from his face. "Come out, come out wherever you are!"

James runs out from the border of the forest and waves his wand, sucking the two new Death Eaters into the ground as well.

I pick up my wand and struggle to rise, using a fallen tree to bring myself upright. Cuts on my face begin to sting as the cold rain hits them, and the dried blood from less recent cuts begins to wash away. I bring my gaze up to look at my uncle and yell angrily when I see a spell that he's shot about to James, who's too busy fighting _another_ two Death Eaters to notice.

I run toward him, gritting my teeth in an attempt to smother the pain, and yell at him, trying to get his attention. I wave my wand and shoot a shielding spell at him, but it gets there too late.

"JAMES!" I yell as I watch his body crumple to the ground in a lifeless mass.

_This isn't how it's supposed to happen!_

I quickly become very aware of the rain falling down my face, or maybe they're tears. I'm not sure. Either way, I can feel myself becoming increasingly angry as my wand seems to move of its own accord, shooting two spells at the Death Eaters.

I then turn my attention to my uncle, whose face shows a mixture of both fear and superiority. I let out another angry yell as my wand, once again, shoots spell after spell at my uncle. I watch each spell hit him and watch his flesh deteriorate more and more each time a spell hits. Finally, the last spell hits and all that's left is a pile of wet bones.

I release a ragged breath then turn back to James, running over to him, once again ignoring the stabbing pain in my back. I roll his body over so that he's lying on his back and cradle his head, silent tears running down my face.

Suddenly I let out a loud pain filled scream as the sharp pain in my back increases, and I all I can see is darkness, and I'm sure that I've just died.

**PLEASE DON'T HATE ME! lol**

**The next chapter is going to be the last chapter. I know, it's bittersweet, but I promise I'll make it a good one.**

**As always, I would love to hear your reviews of the chapter! :)**

**Thanks!**

**-Tx :)**


	44. Chapter 44

**C****hapter 44**

**Ari's POV**

It must be daytime again, because all I can see is blinding white light all around me.

Searing pain shoots through my body again as I try to get up from the soft, forest ground. As I return to sitting still, and another strobe of pain emanates from my back, I realize two things.

First, I'm not dead. The fact that I can feel this immense pain is proof of that. Unless death isn't as peaceful as I've imagined it, but I doubt that's the case. Maybe I'm in Azkaban... I mean, I _did_ kill someone. Maybe I'm suffering the Dementor's kiss in Azkaban right now, and I don't even know it. Again, I doubt it though. I doubt the cell floors of Azkaban are as comfortable as the floor I'm lying on now. It almost feels like a bed...

Second, I realize that I cannot move any of my limbs. Well, it's not so much that I _can't_ move them, it's more that I feel like something is holding all of my limbs to the ground. Just to prove this new revelation to myself, I attempt to lift my arms off the ground again, only to be met by pain and resistance.

It takes me a moment to remember how I got here, but when I do, when I remember what happened to James, I realize I need to go get help. I need to find a way to tell his family what has happened, to apologize to them all. But, more than anything, I just want to see his face one last time. I want to be able to tell him I love him and how sorry I am that I dragged him into this.

But that's not going to happen as long as I'm pinned to the ground, so I clench my fists and grit my teeth as I try my hardest to lift against the restraints that are binding me to the ground. An audible groan of pain escapes through my clenched teeth as the burning pain in my back intensifies, but I tighten my fists and fight through the pain, warm tears rolling down my face in a steady stream as the exertion makes the pain in my back flair up to a point where I almost want to give up. But I can't give up. I have to think of James, and his family.

So I continue to struggle, continue to fight, against the restraints, despite the pain that it brings. Another cry of pain bursts through my lips, and I resign, giving in to stillness again as I try to think of another way to get free. Suddenly my field of vision is filled by blonde, messy hair, deep grey eyes, a wide, toothy smile, and fair skin, all on a familiar face that I haven't seen in a _very_ long time. "Hello again, Ari."

I groan in disappointment as I say, "Well now I _know_ that I'm dead..."

My guest raises an eyebrow in confusion as he smirks and asks, "Now why do you say that?"

I roll my eyes and scoff, the answer to his question obvious. "Because, Carter, _you're_ dead! You've been dead for over two years now!"

Carter's eyes widen and he gasps as he looks around and says, "What do you mean _I'm dead_?! I died?" He looks back down at me and, when he sees my look of misunderstanding, he adds, "I'm only joking. I know _I'm _dead, but _you're_ not dead and _I'm_ not actually here."

"I'm... I'm not dead?"

This time Carter rolls his eyes. "Does it _feel_ like you're dead?"

I sit still for a moment then answer. "Well, no. It _feels_ like someone is trying to remove my spine and ribcage from my body in the most violent way possible, and I _feel _like I'm pinned to the ground, but _no_, I don't _feel_ dead."

Carter grins to himself as he murmurs, "_Pinned to the ground_... You'd be up by now if you weren't so bloody stubborn... There are no restraints, stupid! _YOU'RE _the only thing stopping you from getting up!" He then moves out of my line of sight, down to my left wrist and lifts it off the ground to prove to me that I've been free the entire time. Then he goes to my left leg, my right leg, and my right wrist and does the same, until he believes I'm finally convinced. I lie on the ground still, unsure if I should attempt to get up, until I hear Carter ask, "Why are you still lying on the ground?"

I take a deep, labored breath before admitting, "I'm a bit scared to get up... What if it hurts?"

Carter sighs loudly as he extends a hand down to me, offering me help up. "Of _course_ it's going to hurt. But it's got to hurt before it gets better, right?"

I tentatively reach up and grab his hand, inhaling sharply when he pulls me up and pain shoots through my ribs and spine. I grasp his hand tightly as the pain radiates throughout my entire body, my eyes closed and my teeth clenched as I try to wait it out.

After a few minutes, the pain dulls to something almost manageable, so I open my eyes and release Carter's hand. However, when I open my mouth to apologize to Carter, I find myself looking at another blonde haired familiar face. "Bells?"

She smiles warmly at me as she tucks a loose strand of her shoulder length hair behind her ear. "You okay now?"

I shake my head, my mouth agape. "Er... Are we _sure_ I'm not dead? Where'd Carter go?"

Bella laughs cheerfully. "I _promise_ you're not dead. As Carter said before, he wasn't actually here, and neither am I."

"You're... You're not?"

She shakes her head, a grin on her face. "No, I'm not. I imagine you've thought me up to cope with the pain of what's really going on."

I look around at the completely white forest and sigh. "And I guess we're not _really_ in the Forbidden Forest?"

She shakes her head again, the grin on her face showing she's clearly amused. "No. Again, probably like me and Carter, another one of your coping mechanisms."

I look around again and quietly ask, "And what am I coping with, exactly?"

She shrugs, her expression turning grim. "Your guess is as good as mine, although, I assume it's bad if you needed _me _more than you needed Carter..."

Suddenly, another bout of pain shoots through my body. I let out a gasp before falling to the ground in a sitting position, my eyes squeezed shut as I whimper and try to control the pain. I open my eyes again when it seems that keeping them shut doesn't help with the pain and see Bella sitting across from me with her legs crossed and her hands placed delicately in her lap as she waits patiently for my pain to subside.

After a few minutes, the pain dulls again. Bella seems to notice because she clears her throat before asking, "So how's Freddie been?"

I take a deep breath before saying, "He's better now. He took your death harder than the rest of us, but he's better now. He's, er, actually sort of dating someone else."

She raises an eyebrow. "Oh really?"

I nod awkwardly. "Er, yes... She's really great. She actually reminds me of you a lot. She's not afraid to tell us no when we get too carried away in a prank, not that we've done a lot of that lately, and she's extremely brave. Plus, she puts up with me so she's _got_ to be tolerant."

Bella nods thoughtfully while saying, "She sounds brilliant. What's her name?"

"Brittany. She's from America, actually. She's one of my oldest friends, and basically my sister."

She gives me a perplexed look. "How are they dating if she's from America?"

I take a preparatory breath then tell her about how Landen is actually good, how James lost his memory, how McGonagall sent James, Freddie and me to America to follow "Caledon", how we set a Denver forest on fire then disapparated to the Franklyn's flat, how we got back to Hogwarts then went to James' house for Christmas, how I got captured by my dad and figured out he wasn't actually Caledon, how we got back to Hogwarts and figured out Andromeda was recruiting students for my dad's army, how Alec was one of those recruits, how he lead us to the recruits meeting place, which was a trap, how we fought my dad, along with his recruits _AND_ his Death Eaters, how my dad turned out to be my uncle, how it wasn't me who killed my mother, but my uncle, how James was murdered, how I couldn't save him, and how I killed my uncle. Bella sits listening in intent silence as I recount the events of our seventh year at Hogwarts, waiting patiently when I have to take a break and deal with my sudden surges of pain.

She taps her chin thoughtfully before saying, "What are you going to do now that it's over?"

I shrug my shoulders and say, "Honestly, I don't know. It's going to feel strange to not have to plot ways to foil my uncle..."

She grins at me mischievously. "I'm sure you'll find _some way_ to keep busy..."

I let out a chuckle as I say, "I've sure missed you, Bells. Things just haven't been the same without you."

She shrugs nonchalantly. "I'm sure everyone has managed without me."

"Yeah," I say with a nod, "But just barely."

She rolls her eyes and grins as she changes the subject. "How've you been dealing with Monroe? Break any more of her bones?"

I laugh and nod as I remember the summer camping trip. "Yes, but only once more. It was when we wen-"

Suddenly the bright white forest gets noticeably dimmer and Bella's face turns somber as she looks at the watch on her wrist. "It looks as though it's time for _you_ to wake up and time for _me_ to go..."

I shake my head frantically and reach for her, trying to stop her from getting up. "No! Please don't leave!"

She sighs before saying, "I'm sorry, I can't stay. As I said before, it's time for _you_ to _wake up_."

I can feel my breathing getting more frantic as I watch her leave. "But... Wake _up_?"

She covers her mouth with a hand as she giggles. "Yes, wake up. Take care of Freddie for me? Don't let him get into _too_ much trouble, okay?"

I nod as tears fall down my face again. "I'll try..."

She points an accusing finger at me and grins. "You promise?"

I nod again, unable to speak this time. The forest is so dim now... And it sounds nothing like the forest. I can hear the faint sound of voices that I don't recognize, and the sound of heels clicking against stone. I can smell traces of blood mixed with rubbing alcohol in the air, and I scrunch my nose at the scent.

"Hey! I think she's waking up! Someone go get the Potters!"

_That_ voice I recognize immediately and I can't stop myself from acknowledging him. "Lan?"

I hear rapid footsteps get quieter as the person gets further away from me, probably to do as they were instructed and go get the Potters.

One of my hands is squeezed as he responds. "Yeah, Ari. It's me."

I barely open my eyes and realize that, as I look at the stone ceiling and the metal bar on the end of my bed, I'm in the Hospital Wing. At this realization, my eyes immediately snap open and I squeeze Landen's hand tightly as I try to sit up. The effort, however, brings on a new bout of pain, so I lie back down. "What am I doing he-"

Before I can finish my question, Landen is hugging my head, inducing pain in my spine again. "Ariana Elizabeth, I'm so glad you're alright. You gave us quite the scare."

I try to hide a wince as I say, "Not that I'm not ecstatic to see you, but... You're sort of hurting me..."

He releases my head with a satiated grin. "Sorry! Sorry... Just glad you're alright, is all..."

I look around, barely moving my head to avoid inducing pain, and ask, "What am I doing in the Hospital Wing? Where is everyone?"

He ignores my questions as he yells over his shoulder, "Madam Pomfrey! She's awake!" He looks back at me and asks, "How's your back feeling?"

I attempt to move and immediately wince. "As if it's being violently ripped out of my body."

He nods thoughtfully while glancing over his shoulder to see if Madam Pomfrey is coming to see us. "That's probably Madam Pomfrey's healing potion... Your vertebrae have to reconstruct and get put back into place again. Plus your ribs have to fix themselves and your lung has to reform, since one of your broken ribs punctured it. She said there isn't much she can do about the scars on your face, since they were caused by dark magic, but they don't look that bad so I wouldn't worry about it if I were you."

My eyes widen as I think of the battered state of my body. "Is it... _safe_ for me to move?"

He nods with a small grin. "Of course! It's just going to hurt a bit. Your back was so bad that they were going to take you to St. Mungo's to heal it, but Madam Pomfrey didn't want to move you too much. So she kept you here. Now that her potion has had time to work, you should be fine to move. How's your head?"

I delicately place a hand on my forehead and sigh. "It's spinning, actually..."

Landen nods again, this time examining my face more closely. "That will probably be your concussion... Do you remember what happened?"

I open my mouth to answer but, before I can, Ginny and Harry Potter come rushing into the Hospital Wing, running over to my bed when I wave weakly at them. Ginny is the first one over to me and she immediately grasps my head and plants a kiss on my forehead before pulling my head into a tight hug. "Oh thank Merlin you're alright!"

I wince again, squeezing Landen's hand as I say, "I won't be if everyone keeps hugging my head like this..."

Ginny releases my head with a laugh and an apologetic look. "Sorry, love."

I look over at Harry and ask, "Who told you I was awake?"

"Al did..." He answers warily.

I manage a shaky sigh before I say, "Alright well, I was hoping he would be here to hear this, but I guess I can apologize to him later..."

Ginny looks at me questioningly. "Apologize?"

I nod, wrenching my hand free from Landen's grip, and awkwardly twiddling my thumbs together. "Yes, apologize. I just wanted to say that I'm so sorry I couldn't stop my uncle from killing James... I really did try, but I just wasn't fast enough..."

Ginny gets a worried expression on her face. "Oh dear... You must've hit your head harder than we thought..."

I look from her to Harry to Landen then back to her. "Wait... What are you talking about? You're not mad?"

She frowns when she sees the solemn expression on my face, placing a comforting hand over my own hands. "Harry and I are going to go talk to Madam Pomfrey. If you need anything, yell for me." She looks at Landen and adds, "If anything happens, come get me immediately."

Landen nods silently and the Potters leave. I wait until they're gone and, once I can't see them anymore, I turn to Landen and ask, "Where is everyone?"

He holds up his hand and counts everyone down as he explains. "Freddie is in class, Eli is in the bed next to you and, now that I think about it, this is the first time he's been quiet in two days... Odd... Anyways, Brittany is packing in the Heads common room; she's been here with you and Eli since you two got here, and Al has been switching between going to class and staying with you and Eli."

I raise a questioning eyebrow at Landen. "What about you?"

He shrugs his shoulders indifferently. "I just got out of class about twenty minutes ago. I'm on my free period now."

I roll my eyes, sighing when I see Madam Pomfrey coming over. The moment she gets over to me, she begins taking my pulse and checking my pupils. "How's your back feel, honey?"

"Feels perfect..." I lie, clenching my teeth when she moves one of my arms.

Landen, the poor sport that he is, chimes in. "She _just_ told me that it felt like it was being ripped out of her body." I shoot him a dirty look but he continues. "She's only saying she's fine so she can get up and walk around."

Madam Pomfrey gingerly lifts me into a sitting position and rubs her hand down the length of my spine. "I think that would be alright. It feels like the vertebrae are almost completely back in place. Walking around might help the last few straighten out. Do you know how many times you hit your back, dear?"

I close my eyes as I try to remember. "Two or three, I think."

She nods. "Okay... Would you like to get up and walk around a bit? You've been in this bed for two days now. I'm sure you're ready to get up and move around..."

I reciprocate her nod, a hopeful grin on my face. "Very much so."

She smiles at me as she helps me slide my legs over the edge of the bed. "Landen will help you around, won't he?"

Landen nods, allowing me to drape one of my arms around his shoulders, wincing as my bones and muscles contract and move. "Of course. I know exactly where we'll go first."

Madam Pomfrey shakes her head while setting a pair of white slippers on the stone floor. "No, Mister Franklyn needs his rest."

I slide my feet into the slippers and give her my best puppy dog face. Madam Pomfrey, however, isn't having _any_ of it. "_No_, Miss Brighton. You can visit him later. For now, I want him to sleep."

I nod, a frown on my face, and let Landen guide me out of the Hospital Wing. Walking is hard at first since, with every movement, a new stab of pain shoots through my bones. So I lean my weight against him and, once we're into the corridor, I quietly ask, "So where are we going?"

Landen shrugs as we slowly make our way through the quiet corridor. "It's up to you."

"I want..." I pull him to a stop and chew on my cheek as I think about what I want. "I want to go to class."

I can feel Landen laughing before I hear it, so I smack him in the arm and ask, "What's so funny?!"

He tried unsuccessfully to stifle his laughter. "I'm sorry, it's just... You skip class _all_ year and then, after _one_ near death experience, you feel the need to be scholarly!"

I roll my eyes and am about to respond when I hear two familiar voices echoing throughout the corridor ahead. I glance over at Landen and see that he recognizes the voices too, so I grin as I say, "How about we mess with them again? For old time sake?"

He grins mischievously at me. "_There's_ the old Ariana..."

I remove my arm from around his shoulder and grab his arm instead, leading him out into the corridor. The moment the two girls see us, scowls form on their faces. I stifle the urge to laugh as I say, "Monroe. Ashlynn."

Monroe looks me over before saying, "I thought you were gone for good..."

I smirk at her as I respond. "I find it adorable that you thought you could be rid of me that easy. Unfortunately for you, I'm not going _anywhere_, Monroe."

She frowns then scowls as she says, "You look absolutely ruddy, slag..."

I shrug my shoulders, still smirking. "I'm sure that's true but, compared to you, I look like a bloody princess."

Monroe's eyes widen and she scoffs loudly before grabbing Ashlynn's arm and dragging her away. I look over at Landen and we immediately break into a fit of laughter, barely able to contain ourselves.

After a few minutes of laughing, I say, "Glad to see some things are never going to change..."

Landen smirks at me as he tries to compose himself. "You don't think you'll ever end up getting along with her?"

I shrug my shoulders and return his smirk. "If I had to guess, it's not likely, but you never know." I gesture ahead of me and ask, "Shall we go to class now?"

He nods with a grin, leading me down the corridor. After a few minutes of walking, I release Landen's arm and decide to give walking on my own a try. Landen seems a bit wary at first but, after I've walked alone successfully for a moment, and I turn around and give him a triumphant grin, he backs off.

After walking for a bit more, my stomach growls loudly. I turn around and look at Landen pleadingly. "Can we _please_ go get food from the kitchen instead?"

Landen nods with a grin. "Yes please! I'm _starving_! Besides, Azuri will be glad to see that you're okay. She was quite worried about you, you know."

I frown at him before leading us toward the kitchen. "I feel bad that I haven't gone to visit her much..."

"Don't beat yourself up too much. She knows you've been a bit busy." He says from behind me.

We continue to the kitchen in content silence. Once inside, Azuri rushes over and hugs my legs. "Azuri is so happy that Miss Ariana is alright!"

I pat her on the shoulder with a grin. "You and me both, Azuri. Has Landen been treating you well?"

She nods, an exuberant grin on her face as she thrusts plates of food at the both of us. "Oh yes! Master Landen has been most gracious to Azuri. He visits often and makes sure Azuri has everything she needs."

I glance over at Landen and grin. "Good. If he's ever mean to you, you let me know. I'll put him in his place for you."

Azuri laughs happily. "Oh thank you Miss Ariana, but I know that won't be necessary. Master Landen is most kind to Azuri." She glances back into the kitchen. "Azuri is very pleased to have seen you again, Miss Ariana, but I must get back to work. Let Azuri know if you need anything."

I nod with a smile. "Thank you, Azuri."

Landen and I eat our food in silence, finishing our plates and calling Azuri back for seconds before either of us does any talking. After finishing his second plate, Landen clears his throat and uses his fork to draw designs into the gravy on his plate, his eyes focused on his artwork. "So..."

I look over at him and sigh, rolling my eyes in the process. "What, Lan?"

He glances up at me and purses his lips, as if he's trying to figure out if he should answer my question. Apparently curiosity overrules his fear of me, or maybe he's not as scared of me anymore since I'm injured. "So what all do you remember?"

I let out another sigh and furrow my brow together as I answer. "Erm, it's still all a bit hazy, I guess. I mean, I remember my uncle killing James and then I remember killing my uncle... That's about it..." I quietly add, "I'm just trying _really_ hard not to remember it... It hurts too much... _So_ much worse than the others..."

Landen nods his understanding as he grabs our plates and hands them to Azuri. He stands up and extends a hand toward me while saying, "Where do you want to go now? Still want to go to class?"

I shake my head, gratefully accepting his outstretched hand, and stand, releasing his hand once I'm up. "Can we go see Brittany?"

He nods, visibly happy that I'm not asking him to take me to class. As we leave the kitchen and walk toward the Gryffindor Heads dorm, another question comes to mind. "Hey... What happened to Eli? Why is he in the Hospital Wing?"

Landen grins again as he mentally recounts what happened to Eli. "Oh, your brother, that plucky git... He tried to shoot a spell at a Death Eater, but his spell ricocheted back and he hit himself instead."

I chuckle and nod. "That sounds like Eli..."

We, once again, go back to walking in content silence, both lost in thought. We're almost to the common room when I ask my next question. "Did anyone else get hurt?"

Landen shakes his head. "Nothing too bad. Lots of cuts, scrapes and bruises, maybe a broken bone or two, but nothing that couldn't be healed right away. You and Eli had it worst."

I nod again, murmuring, "Not _worst_..." before speaking the password to get into the Gryffindor common room. Once inside the empty common room, we walk over to the portrait that leads into the Heads common room, and I say the password to get in there as well.

The portrait swings open and I immediately see Brittany crouched in front of her suitcase, her curly brown hair pulled up into a messy ponytail, a checklist held in her hands. She has a few small cuts along her face and neck, but she looks mostly unscathed. A smile spreads across my face as I walk into the room with her.

At the sound of us entering the room, she looks up absentmindedly. When she sees that it's me and Landen, a big smile spreads on her face and she jumps up off the ground, sprinting toward us.

She wraps me in a tight, slightly painful, hug then releases me, a devious grin on her face. She looks over her shoulder and yells, "SHE'S HERE!"

I give her a puzzled look and grab Landen's arm, my confusion only growing when I see a black haired, hazel eyed boy walk out of his room. "_James_?!"

He waves sheepishly at me. "Hey..."

Before I can realize what I'm doing, I've released Landen's arm and I'm standing directly in front of James, my hand reaching out and hesitantly touching his face. "What're you _doing_ here?!"

James buries his hands in his pockets and shrugs. "I'm sorry... Al just got me out of class a few moments ago. I only came to my room to put my stuff away, then I was going to visit you in the Hospital Wing. I didn't think you'd come looking for me..."

"What I, er... Well, I... What I mean is..." I look at him warily, as if I'm imagining him being in front of me. "But you're really _here_?"

He nods, a slight smirk on his face. "In the flesh. Is it really so hard to believe?"

I nod as I realize this is just another figment of my imagination that I'm using to cope with James' death. I let out a sigh and thoughtfully say, "This really _is_ an elaborate dream... I almost believed it was real!"

I hear Landen laugh and watch James roll his eyes and chuckle as he shakes his head and murmurs "So stubborn..." He then carefully grabs my face and kisses me and, though it's only a brief kiss, it's as good as I remember. When he releases me, he smirks as he asks, "Did _that_ seem like a _dream_?"

I nod again, a slight smirk on my own face. "Actually, yes. Dream James would _definitely_ do that."

Behind me, Landen scoffs. Then I'm spun around and I'm kissed again, this time by Landen. It only takes me a nanosecond to realize what's happening before I manage to angrily swing a punch, his lips leaving mine when my fist comes in contact with his jaw. "_LANDEN_!"

When I realize that not even dream Landen would do that, I spin back around and look at James again through wide eyes. "So I'm _not_ dreaming?!"

James shakes his head with a laugh. "No, you're not." He looks past me, at Landen, and adds, "Although I'm sure there was another way to convince her..."

I breathe a sigh of relief before grabbing his shirt and pulling him into a kiss, this one more ardent than the first. This kiss lasts as long as the first kiss did, much to my dismay. James reluctantly pulls away and sighs. "You're okay?"

I roll my eyes as I answer. "I'm _fine_. A little confused, but fine nonetheless." James looks at me questioningly, so I explain. "I thought you were dead. What happened in that forest?"

He grabs my hand and guides me over to one of the couches, pulling me to sit next to him, our hands never leaving the security of one anothers, as he says, "A _lot_, actually."

Brittany and Landen sit on the other couch, Landen still massaging his jaw. Brittany crosses her legs and grins at me. "You really did miss a lot..."

I look at both of them before impatiently asking, "Are either of you going to tell me what exactly I missed?"

James grins and says, "Yeah, sorry. Well, I ran into the clearing to help you deal with your dad but, when I got there, you were laying on the ground. I actually thought you were dead. All the surrounding trees were completely fallen and you were just lying there, while your uncle was getting up. So I called for help; just someone to get you out of there while I dealt with your dad. Apparently your uncle called for help as well, because about a dozen Death Eaters flew into the clearing and started firing spells at me. That's when Brittany got there. She-"

Brittany squeals excitedly. "Oh can I _please_ tell this part? Pretty please?!"

James smirks and nods, and Brittany grins as she begins telling the story. "So I hear James yell for help, right? So I disarm and stupefy the Death Eater I was fighting and run to help him, since I was the only one available at the time. When I got into the clearing, I saw James was severely outnumbered. He yelled something about moving your body, so I looked around for you. When I saw you lying on the ground, blood on your face and neck, I was sure you were dead. I was absolutely enraged! So, rather than move your body like James asked, I gripped my wand and marched right through the crowd of Death Eaters, stupefying a few of them on the way, until I found your uncle. At this point, the rain had stopped completely so, the moment I saw him I fired a spell at him, not even giving him a chance to say anything. He-"

James holds up his hand and says, "Hold on. Let us not fail to mention that the spell was the Reducto spell..."

Brittany glares at him, shutting him up instantly. "_Anyways_! Your uncle didn't even see it coming! My spell hit him in the chest and he exploded! It was a huge mess, chunks of your uncle flying everywhere, but it terrified the Death Eaters, so they ran away. James immediately brought you to the Hospital Wing and you've been there ever since. Madam Pomfrey wouldn't tell us what happened to you, but Landen did some eavesdropping and told us. How's your back?"

I shrug calmly. "I mean, I've had two days to heal so it feels fine now... Bri, I'm so..."

She grins again. "I know, right? Who knew I had it in me!"

James squeezes my hand and quietly says, "Who knew the prophecy was talking about _her_ instead of _you_..."

I nod in agreement, smirking as I whisper, "Don't tell anyone, but I'm honestly a bit glad that it wasn't referring to me, although it would have been nice to know that a little sooner. It would have prevented a _lot_ of unnecessary stress..."

Brittany interrupts my whispering by asking, "Have you seen Eli yet?"

I shake my head. "No, he was sleeping when I woke up and Madam Pomfrey refused to let me see him while he was sleeping."

She laughs and rolls her eyes. "That boy... You know he's been milking this for all it's worth! You know how lazy he is... I'm sure he was fine after the first day and has been faking the rest of the time, just to get out of packing!"

I look at her somberly. "Do you two really _have_ to leave?"

She nods, a sad expression on her face. "Unfortunately, yes. I'm sure mom has been worried sick about us. Plus, I miss her. This is the longest I've been without seeing her and I hate it."

"What about Freddie? What are you going to tell him?"

She laughs at my attempt to get her to stay as she answers. "We've already talked about it. He was upset, but he understands. Don't worry though, we won't leave until Madam Pomfrey releases Eli."

I let out a defeated sigh and ask, "Do we know what happened to Andromeda?"

James grins while looking at Brittany, who is also grinning. "Dad actually found her hiding outside the forest. He's already sent her to Azkaban, where she'll stay for quite some time."

I let out a relieved breath and nod with a grin. "Okay, good. It really is finally over, isn't it?"

James nods with a laugh. "Yes, it really is..." Then he leans over and kisses me again, letting me know that, while things may not be _perfect_ right now, things are definitely going to be better, before smirking at me as he quietly says, "I do believe I owe you a dinner..."

I return his smirk as I respond. "What are you talking about?"

He rolls his eyes, his smirk turning into a grin. "We made a bet, at the quidditch match at Landen's place, that if you caught the snitch before I made ten goals, I would owe you a dinner..."

I think back to what he's talking about and laugh. "Ah, yes. I do believe we agreed it would be made without magic, though."

He chuckles softly then says, "Yes, well, I know it's not handmade, but will a dinner in the Hogwarts kitchen do?"

I tap my chin in pretend thought, trying to make him wait for my answer as long as possible. "I'll meet you there at midnight."

He raises an eyebrow at me and laughs again. "You _do_ remember that we are, in fact, still Head Boy and Head Girl... We have duties to perform tonight."

I roll my eyes at him. "We've literally blown them off the _entire_ year, what's one more night?"

James smirks at me again and nods. "It's a date."

**Alright y'all! I'm sad to say that this is the end! ****I do have a few things to say though.**

**First, I want to thank EVERYONE who took the time to read this story, to add it to their alerts, and to leave a review. You all will never know how grateful I am for you. When I first started this story, I honestly did not think it would make it to a second story, let alone a third. You readers are truly stupendous and I want to be sure that you know that I really do appreciate each and every one of you.**

**Second, if y'all feel there are any questions that were left unanswered, or just have anything you didnt understand, feel free to message me. I will be more than glad to answer y'alls questions!**

**Third, I was wondering if y'all would want me to write up an epilogue for this. Just food for thought. If I have enough people who DO want that, I will gladly type one up and post it as another chapter. Just let me know if that's what y'all want! :)**

**Finally, I want to let you know that I have another Harry Potter: Next Generation story that I'm working on called Misadventures at Hogwarts. I would love for y'all to check it out and let me know what you think!**

**Thank you again for everything! :)**

**-Txstate1992**


	45. Chapter 45

**Authors note:**

**Hey y'all, I was thinking about it, and I was wondering if y'all would want me to post a seperate story about James and Ariana's life after Hogwarts. It would **

**most likely involve Freddie, Eli, Landen, Brittany and Al as well. It's completely up to y'all, but I just wanted to throw the idea out there to see how y'all felt **

**about it. :)**

**-Tx**


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